Gone Medieval

In 1302, an army of Flemish townsmen achieved the impossible. At the Battle of the Golden Spurs, infantry armed with pikes and determination crushed the mounted knights of Kingdom of France in one of the greatest military upsets of the Middle Ages. Matt Lewis is joined by Danièle Cybulski to uncover the truth behind this classic David v Goliath story. Why did France invade Flanders? How did ordina...

Why did a young Roman nobleman reject status and education for a life of prayer, solitude and discipline? St Benedict’s quiet choices would go on to shape the future of Western civilisation. His is a story of medieval Christianity, monastic life, hospitality, order, prayer and work — and of a different kind of greatness. Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Dr. Tim Larsen to explore the extraordinary l...

Was King Stephen a weak ruler who plunged England into chaos, or an unlucky monarch trapped by impossible circumstances? How did one disputed succession unleash nearly two decades of civil war, betrayal and brutality, which inspired George R. R. Martin's House of the Dragon? Matt Lewis and Professor Carl Watkins explore the troubled reign of the king whose seizure of the throne in 1135 helped igni...

What starts as a shocking street murder in Paris turns into one of the most vicious civil wars in medieval Europe? Dr Eleanor Janega is joined by Professor Justine Firnhaber-Baker to unravel the blood-soaked conflict between Burgundy and the Armagnacs, a struggle triggered by assassination, fuelled by propaganda, and made more dangerous by a mad king, a divided court and a war-torn France. They ex...

What if Scotland’s story began with a miracle in battle, a white cross in the sky, and a kingdom forged through war, faith and sheer ambition? Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Murray Pittock to race through medieval Scotland, from the Saltire’s legendary origins to Picts, Gaels, Vikings and the rise of Alba. They trace how a patchwork of peoples became a nation. MORE Viking Siege of Dumbarton Lis...

What really made a royal bastard, and could illegitimacy be a path to power as much as a barrier? Dr Eleanor Janega is joined by Lauren Johnson, author of Margaret Beaufort; Survivor, Rebel, Kingmaker to dive into the scandalous world of medieval illegitimacy. They trace how the label of “bastard” developed, why it could upend inheritance, how an explosive accusations could turn the tables of powe...

How did a nomadic people from the Steppes become one of the great powers of the medieval Middle East? Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Nicholas Morton to explore the rise of the Seljuk Turks, the nomadic horsemen who carved out a vast empire, toppled old powers, and helped reshape the world of the Crusades. Along the way, they ask how the Seljuks conquered so much so fast, why mounted archers were so ha...

What happened when Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II joined forces, and why did it set medieval Europe on fire? Dr. Eleanor Janega and Matt Lewis break out of the Gone Medieval dungeon to explore the dramatic rise of the Plantagenets, from a demonic family legend in Anjou to the dazzling court of Poitiers and the whirlwind marriage that united vast French lands. Expect romance, rivalry, and a dyna...

What really went on at the court of King William Rufus? William the Conqueror's son and successor was fierce and ruthless. He taxed heavily, refused to conform to the ideals of kingship, and reportedly presided over a court of extravagant young men and sexual licentiousness. But how much of Rufus's reputation was shaped by the monks that despised him? Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Tom Licence,...

How did a cloistered, twelfth century nun become a visionary, composer, healer, preacher, and adviser to popes and emperors? Despite having visions from childhood - even in the womb, she claimed - Hildegard of Bingen waited until the age of 42 when she heard a divine command to “write what you see and hear”, a moment that launched one of the most remarkable careers of the medieval world, including...

A plague of terrifying speed, mysterious symptoms and global reach, the Black Death transformed more than Europe alone. Matt Lewis is joined by Thomas Asbridge to chart the medieval spread, from Caffa’s siege lines to Cairo’s crowded streets, from brutal medical experiments to self-flagellating penitents and a medieval world shaken to its core. MORE How To Survive Plague and War in the Middle Ages...

Could a medieval church really protect a killer from the law? From the 40-day asylum of parish churches to the more permanent protections claimed by Westminster Abbey, sanctuary was never simply an escape route, it was a contested space where mercy and authority met. Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Professor Shannon McSheffrey to uncover the extraordinary history of a medieval institution that cou...

How could a love song become a political weapon? How were scandals, wars and crusades turned into some of the most influential poetry ever written? The songs of the troubadours - celebrities in their day - helped define the emotional landscape of the Middle Ages and left a legacy that still echoes through European literature. Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Linda M. Paterson to explore the poet-...

Who survives when medieval deaths are turned into Top Trumps? In this riotous made up game of Foolish Fatalities, Dr. Eleanor Janega and Matt Lewis rank the most ridiculous ends of the Middle Ages, from a latrine disaster and Henry I’s fatal fish, to a king laughing himself to death and a ghoulish deadly bite delivered by a severed head. Expect gore, gossip, and (at least) one unforgettable toilet...

How did the Fatimids build one of Islam's most powerful medieval empires? What can the rise of this dynasty reveal about power, culture, tolerance, and women’s authority? Stretching across North Africa, Egypt, and parts of Sicily, Syria, Palestine and Arabia, the Fatimids created an empire renowned for prosperity, cultural brilliance and relative tolerance, one in which women were promoted to posi...

Long-haired rulers, dynastic bloodshed, secret letters, and a kingdom built in the aftermath of empire; Dr. Eleanor Janega and Dr. James Palmer dive into the wild, Roman-adjacent world of the Merovingians. What made the first kings of France so unforgettable, and why were they later written out of the story? From myth to murder, this is the family that helped shape medieval France. MORE Why The Ea...

What happened after the Battle of Agincourt? How did Henry V's victory turn into a seven-year struggle of sieges, diplomacy, ambition, murder and missed destiny? Matt Lewis is joined by W.B. Bartlett to explore a brutal and often overlooked phase of the Hundred Years’ War and why the post-Agincourt years matter so much to medieval, English and French history. MORE The Battle of Agincourt Listen on...

What if one medieval woman could outwit emperors, shape popes, and force Henry IV to stand barefoot in the snow? Dr. Katherine Harvey joins Dr. Eleanor Janega to tell the astonishing story of Matilda of Canossa, the Iron Countess of Tuscany, whose fortress at Canossa became the stage for the famous Walk to Canossa. Discover her political brilliance, brutal family dramas, papal alliances, failed ma...

What if the medieval world did not end with a bang, but with a messy argument over who gets to define history itself? Matt Lewis spars with Not Just The Tudors' host Professor Suzannah Lipscomb to spar over Gutenberg, the Reformation, witchcraft, plague, the Renaissance, and the Wars of the Roses to ask where medieval ends and early modern begins. The result is a lively, surprising fight over powe...

What could drive a pope to put a corpse on trial? In 897, Rome staged one of the Middle Ages’ strangest spectacles: the Cadaver Synod, where Pope Stephen VI exhumed his predecessor and put his body on trial. Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Jessica Wärnberg to unpack the violent politics behind the outrage, the rival factions at stake, and why this gruesome event still fascinates today. MORE Concla...

How did a widowed mother transform loss, politics and misogyny into one of the most accomplished literary careers in medieval history? From the Parisian court to contemporaneously telling the story of Joan of Arc, Christine de Pizan was Europe’s first professional woman writer and publisher. Matt Lewis is joined by Katherine Pangonis to explore her extraordinary life and uncover the story of one o...

Did Constantinople’s fall in 1453 end the Byzantine Empire as neatly as we think? Dr. Eleanor Janega and Dr. Laura Bolick unpack the Empire's dramatic final years and reveal a story far more complex than simple decline. Through the lives of Isidore of Kiev and Bessarion, they explore desperate diplomacy, church union, Ottoman expansion, and the political gambles behind the demise of Constantinople...

Was Offa a tyrant whose reputation was forever tainted by the killing of his prospective son-in-law? Or a visionary ruler whose achievements have been overshadowed by legend? Offa is largely known for murderous acts and building a dyke. But he was so much more: a great leader who reshaped Mercia into the dominant power in southern Britain, and pioneered new models of kingship that would influence...

Who would pick a fight with the Pope?? Matt Lewis and Dr. Eleanor Janega dive into the explosive clash between Pope Boniface VIII and Philip IV of France, a head of state who dared to challenge papal power. From taxes and excommunication to arrest and humiliation, this is a gripping story of ambition, authority, and the Avignon Papacy. MORE Pope Vs. Emperor: An 11th Century Crisis Listen on Apple...

Was Richard the Lionheart really England’s greatest medieval hero? Or is he one of history’s most successful myths, more heroic in legend than in life? Over eight centuries, Richard has handled Excalibur, been celebrated in medieval romance, reinvented in novels and films, and even transformed into a character in Assassin’s Creed. Matt Lewis is joined by Dr. Heather Blurton to dig into the myths o...