Fortune's Wheel: A Podcast History of Our Medieval Story

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 95: Everybody Hates Will: A Continental Conspiracy The continent stirs. As William works to secure his hold on England, enemies old and new emerge from the shadows—plotting not just rebellion, but coordinated resistance. France, Flanders, Anjou… even distant allies begin whispering. The 1070s are far from quiet, and William’s balancing act is about...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 94: Everybody Hates Will: The Revolt of the Earls Just when things start settling down for William—Normandy squared away, England finally quieting—bam! Rebellion. Again. In this episode, a trio of high-ranking English earls decide they’ve had enough of Norman rule. What follows is equal parts drama, betrayal, and a reminder that crowns never sit eas...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 93: Shifting Winds We build the scaffolding for what’s to come. Between 1070 and 1075, the winds of power shift across England and Normandy. Old threats fade, new ones rise, and William finds himself playing both monarch and firefighter—stamping out sparks before they become infernos. It's the calm before the next storm… if you can call anything...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 92: The Siege of Ely Today, we witness the final chapter in the legend of Hereward the Exile. From the swamps of Ely, the outlaw makes his last desperate stand against Norman rule. And in return? William responds with cold, calculating fury—the kind only a conqueror can deliver. The age of resistance is dying, but it’s going out swinging. No More Pa...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 91: The Sack of Peterborough The outlaw strikes again. In the second chapter of Hereward the Exile’s legend, the fight against Norman domination takes a darker turn. As East Anglia erupts and a sacred abbey falls to flame and fury, one message rings loud and clear: the English are not done resisting. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s h...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 90: Hereward the Exile We begin the legend of Hereward the Wake —a rebellious spark left smoldering in the ashes of William’s brutal conquest. Outlawed, underestimated, and driven by fury, Hereward becomes something else entirely: a folk hero. This is the story of resistance born from ruin. NOTE: Please forgive my voice. It’ll heal and get back to n...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 89: A Scottish Marriage We head north to Scotland, where King Malcolm III makes a move that will echo for generations: marrying Margaret, sister of the last true heir of the House of Wessex. In this union of sword and saint, we see not just political maneuvering—but the shaping of future kingdoms. It's 1070, and the ripples of William’s conquest...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 88: Reeling Amidst war, rebellion, and scorched earth, tragedy strikes the royal house. William and Matilda’s son Richard, once a living symbol of their growing dynasty, dies suddenly in a hunting accident in the New Forest. In a world where legacy is everything, the loss of an heir casts a long, dark shadow over the crown. No More Paywalls! How? If...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 87: Analysis of a Harrying I won’t pretend that I even came close to a definitive answer to my lingering questions regarding William’s actions in the North during the winter of 1069 - 1070, but these are my thoughts and how I tried to work some of it all out, trying to come to terms with how such a thing could have happened in the first place. I hop...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 86: The Harrying of the North Today, we ride straight into the storm. The year is 1070, and in the smoldering wake of rebellion, King William unleashes a campaign of devastation the likes of which England has never seen. Villages are burned. Fields are salted. The dead go unburied. This is no mere suppression—it’s calculated annihilation. This is th...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 85: The Last Straw Today, the Normans face their most humiliating defeat yet on English soil. But what follows isn’t retreat—it’s vengeance. William responds with unrelenting fury in what becomes one of the darkest chapters in England’s medieval story: the Harrying of the North. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s happening here – bringi...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 84: A Deadly Game of Tug-of-War With Edwin and Morcar’s rebellion snuffed out, William the Conqueror isn’t catching his breath anytime soon. In this episode, we follow the king-duke as he dashes between England and Normandy, stamping out unrest and managing a kingdom that seems ready to boil over at any moment. It’s a chaotic, backbreaking era for a...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 83: Edwin & Morcar's Rebellion Before we charge forward in the story of the Norman Conquest, it’s time to regroup. In this episode, we lay the groundwork for one of the most important regional uprisings of the period—led by the earls Edwin and Morcar. Their rebellion in 1069 wasn’t just defiance; it was desperation. And what followed would s...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 82: 1069 Rebellions in the north. Foreign invasions. Smoldering resentment across the land he just conquered. William may have won the crown in 1066, but in 1069, he’s learning what it costs to  keep  it. This is the year everything could’ve unraveled. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to li...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England Standalone Short Story EPISODE 81: Causam et Remedium In an original short story written by yours truly—based on fragments of medieval chronicles—we follow a young man haunted by guilt, grief, and something darker. After tragedy strikes, he flees into the storm, pursued by visions that blur the line between penance and madness. His road ends not with vengea...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England Miniseries: Matilda of Flanders EPISODE 80: Behind Every Great Man, Pt. 3 William wins England—but Matilda gets the real prize: revenge. While her husband claims the throne across the Channel, Matilda proves she's far more than a passive consort. She handles old scores with chilling grace and sets the tone for what it means to be a duchess in full comma...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England Miniseries: Matilda of Flanders EPISODE 79: Behind Every Great Man, Pt. 2 Today, William and Matilda are not yet king and queen—but make no mistake, they’re building something seismic. Through family, loyalty, and careful consolidation of power, the Duke and Duchess of Normandy lay the groundwork for a legacy that will reshape England, France, and beyond. T...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England Miniseries: Matilda of Flanders EPISODE 78: Behind Every Great Man, Pt. 1 William - finally! - meets his match. In this first episode of a new miniseries, we meet Matilda of Flanders—not yet a queen, but already a force to be reckoned with. As a teenage noblewoman in the powerful House of Flanders, Matilda was well-positioned to make a prestigious marriage…...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 77: The Ties That Bind In light of the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II of England, we trace the remarkable lineage of Matilda of Flanders—from her pivotal role as Queen of England beside William the Conqueror to her far-off royal descendant, Queen Elizabeth II. What connects these two formidable women across nearly a thousand years? More than y...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 76: The Matriarch With Harold Godwinson dead at Hastings and his brothers slain alongside him, the once-mighty House of Godwine teeters on the edge of ruin. In the shadows of defeat, it’s their mother—Gytha—who emerges as the family’s anchor. Today, we follow her desperate attempt to hold her shattered house together as they flee a kingdom no longer...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 75: Sparks No sooner has William of Normandy become King of England than the realm begins to rise up against him. While William returns to Normandy to secure his continental holdings, England erupts in rebellion. From north to south, resistance spreads—and the Conquest faces its first real test. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s happen...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 74: The Coronation of King William I After months of bloodshed, strategy, and political maneuvering, Duke William of Normandy finally claims the prize he crossed the Channel for—he becomes King William I of England. But this isn’t just about a crown. It’s the beginning of a seismic shift in English history.  No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in...

SEASON 5: The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 73: London Calling With Harold dead and the English leadership fractured, Duke William begins his calculated march north from Hastings. His eyes are set on London—but rather than charge the city, he circles it like a hawk, testing its defenses and looking for an opening to claim the crown of England. The Conquest isn’t over. It’s only just begun. No...

SEASON 5 (OPENER): The Norman Conquest of England EPISODE 72: An English Catastrophe After the dust settled at Hastings, England stood stunned. King Harold was dead—but who, if anyone, would rise to resist Duke William? What did the battlefield look like the day after? Who had the authority, the strength, or even the courage to claim the crown in October 1066? Today, we explore the chaos, the ques...

SEASON 4 (FINALE): The Mediterranean Prepares EPISODE 71: El Cid, Pt. 5: Valencia Rodrigo Díaz ends his story the only way he could—his way. Today, we ride into the unforgettable conclusion of Spain’s greatest hero, the legendary El Cid. Part history, part myth, all epic. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to th...