Noble Blood

A volcanic eruption turning 1816 into the "year without a summer." A group of Romantic poets stuck inside would change literary history forever. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patreon — Merch! — Order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Story See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elizabeth was Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. She was a beauty icon with long, chestnut brown hair that came down, allegedly to her ankles. But she also lived a life of quiet, lonely depression. She was a ghost, even before her assassination. Support Noble Blood : — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patreon — Merch! — Order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Story Learn more about your ad-choices a...

Princess Charlotte of Wales was England's grand hope for the future, directly in line for the throne after the infirm King George III and the buffoonish Prince Regent George IV. She fought for her independence, for the ability to choose her own husband, and ultimately succeeded. But her love story was short-lived. Support Noble Blood : — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patreon — Merch! — Order Dana'...

In 1483, the two sons of the late King Edward IV went into the Tower of London, preparing for the older son's coronation. Instead, their uncle, Richard III was crowned, and the two boys were never seen again. The truth of what happened to the "princes" in the tower is one of history's greatest mysteries, and writers have imagined answers for centuries. Support Noble Blood : — Bonus episodes and sc...

When Lucy Moss and Toby Marlow were students at Cambridge University, they co-wrote a musical about the six wives of Henry VIII. From Edinburgh Fringe to the West End to Broadway, 'Six' has become a global phenomenon. Dana speaks to Moss and Marlow about theatre, women in popular culture, and revisionist history. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patr eon — Mer ch! — Order Dana'...

Prince Sado of Korea had gone mad. He was prone to violent fits of rage; he would assault and threaten and even kill servants at court. His father, King Yeongjo, needed a way to get rid of him. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patre on — Merc h! — Order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Sto ry — Sign up to join Dana on the Mary Shelley Pilgrimage in Apr il Learn more about your ad-c...

When Sarah Forbes Bonetta was seven years old, she was enslaved in the African kingdom of Dahomey and presented as a gift to a visiting British naval captain. The captain brought her to London in order to "rescue" her. The young girl would soon become the goddaughter to the most powerful woman in the world: Queen Victoria. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patre on — Merc h! — O...

Boudica is one of the most famous folk-heroines of Great Britain, a woman who led thousands of troops in 61 A.D. against the Roman occupiers. Though her rebellion was ultimately uncessful, Boudica's final victory would be in becoming a symbol that endured through the centuries. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patre on — Merc h! — Pre-order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Sto ry —...

In a small town in the northeast of Spain, in a small pub, a man named Albert Solà works as a waiter. He might also be the rightful King of Spain. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patre on — Merc h! — Pre-order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Sto ry — Sign up to join Dana on the Mary Shelley Pilgrimage in Apr il Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork....

In 1386 France, Jean Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris faced each other in a fight to the death. The two were former friends turned bitter enemies. Le Gris was accused of a terrible crime, and the courts determined that only God could determine the guilty party. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patreo n — Merch ! — Pre-order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Stor y — Sign up to join Dan...

Throughout history, there have been stories of royals going mad. But very few kings have committed murder in their fits of insanity. Support Noble Blood: — Bonus episodes and scripts on Patre on — Merc h! — Pre-order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Sto ry — Sign up to join Dana on the Mary Shelley Pilgrimage in Apr il Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnyst...

At the end of the 1700s, Tipu Sultan was the leader of the Kingdom of Mysore, facing off against the encroaching invasion of the British East India Trading Company. Today, Tipu's legacy is complicated and still confused with propaganda and mythology. Was he a crusading hero, or a religious bigot? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener f...

In the 18th century in Russia, a noblewoman named Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova was well known in her area for treating her serfs with unique cruelty. But the true situation was far worse than the rumors. Eventually, she would be convicted of beating 38 young women to death, but many think she might have killed over a hundred more. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork...

Elizabeth Báthory is famous for being one of history's most prolific serial killers, a Hungarian Countess who tortured and slaughtered hundreds of young women, protected by her power as a noble. But what is the story is a little more complicated? What if the political power that allegedly protected her was actually a target for her political enemies? Is it possible that history's favorite murderes...

King Edward VIII is notorious for abdicating the British throne to marry a twice-divorced American woman. But Wallis Simpson was far from his most notorious paramour... Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hortense Mancini is perhaps most famous for being a royal mistress, but her life was a series of adventures and scandals. Hortense was willing to do whatever it took to be a woman who lived on her own terms in the 17th century. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Frances Howard wanted to divorce her first husband and marry someone else. Someone was standing in the way. [Support Noble Blood on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/noblebloodtales . Noble Blood merch is available here: https://store.dftba.com/collections/noble-blood ] Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The rivalry between Mary, Queen of Scots, and Queen Elizabeth I is stuff of legends: neighboring queens, cousins, opposites, and deadly opponents. [Support Noble Blood on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/noblebloodtales . Noble Blood merch is available here: https://store.dftba.com/collections/noble-blood ] Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudi...

Vincenzo Gonzaga's first marriage ended in a humiliating divorce by non-consummation,. His next set of would-be in-laws wanted to make sure the same problem wouldn't happen twice, and so the Vatican was called in to help orchestrate a public trial for Gonzaga to undertake. Turns out there was nothing simple about sex and masculinity in Renaissance Italy. [Side note: I wrote a book! It's a gothic l...

A bisexual, sword-fighting, opera-singing, 17th century arsonist... no wonder there are so many stories about her. [Side note: I wrote a book! It's a gothic love story about 19th century Edinburgh, and you can pre-order here: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/anatomy-a-love-story/ ] Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa...

When Mary rode into London to claim her crown, she was met with celebration the likes of which had never been seen before in the city streets. Five years later, at the end of her reign, she was a hated figure. Today, she's known as Bloody Mary. [Side note: You can pre-order ANATOMY: A LOVE STORY here! https://read.macmillan.com/lp/anatomy-a-love-story/ ] Learn more about your ad-choices at https:/...

The oldest daughter of Henry VIII, Mary Tudor, is commonly known today as "Bloody Mary" for her persecution of Protestants in England during her reign as queen. But as a young woman, she was a girl whose life was ripped out from under her when her father declared that she was no longer a princess. [Side note: I wrote a book! It's a gothic love story about 19th century Edinburgh, and you can pre-or...

Christina of Sweden is one of the most compelling figures of the 17th century, a queer Catholic convert who rejected social norms and stepped down as a monarch to live a life completely on her own terms. [Side note: my novel, ANATOMY: A LOVE STORY is available for pre-order at read.macmillan.com/lp/anatomy-a-love-story] Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See o...

For our 50th (!) episode, Noble Blood is tackling historical rumors: "Let them eat cake," Elizabeth I being a man, the lost dauphin of France, and....... *that* rumor about Catherine the Great. [Side note: I wrote a book!!!! It's a novel about a 19th century surgeon and body snatcher, and you can pre-order it here: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/anatomy-a-love-story/] Learn more about your ad-choic...

In American history books, King George III is painted as the despotic villain keeping us from our independence. That he was "mad," then, makes perfect sense. But in reality, his madness was a sad coda to a long reign, a tragic untreated illness that left him completely alone. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informatio...