The History of Byzantium

Mehmed II becomes Sultan in 1451 and immediately makes plans to conquer Constantinople. Period: 1448-53 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John VIII Palaiologos asks the Pope for an Ecumenical Council to reunite the churches. To his surprise the Pontiff says yes and a huge Byzantine contingent travels to Italy. Period: 1425-48 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the Ottoman civil war raging Manuel II Palaiologos tries to improve the Roman position and ensure his sons succeed him. Period: 1402-30 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manuel II Palaiologos refuses to play vassal to Sultan Bayezid. So the Ottomans set up a permanent blockade of New Rome. The siege would last for eight years and only a miracle could save the Romans. Period: 1391-1402 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John V Palaiologos faces rebellions from his sons and Grandsons. Forcing the Romans to become both Ottomans vassals and the pawns of Venice and Genoa. Period: 1371-91 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We look at the details of how the Ottomans ran their state. Including the creation of loyalty to the ruling dynasty, succession policy, military recruitment and slave trading.  Period: 1280-1371 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We follow the last century of narrative from an Ottoman point of view. Period: 1280-1371 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John V Palaiologos takes charge of the Empire but finds he has only one option left to save his state. He must travel West and beg for Latin help. Meanwhile the Turks conquer Thrace. Period: 1355-71 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Finally in sole control of the Empire John Kantakouzenos makes plans to restore the Roman world. His plans come to nothing though as he immediately faces war, invasion and plague. Period: 1347-55 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In order to gain the throne John Kantakouzenos destroys what is left of the Roman Empire. He allows the Serbs to conquer Macedonia while his Turkish allies enslave his people. Period: 1343-47 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andronikos III Palaiologos died on the 15th June 1341. Four months later his nearest and dearest were at each others throats. His right hand man John Kantakouzenos declared himself Emperor but was rejected by the people at every turn. Refusing to give up he invited foreign powers to intervene on his behalf. Period: 1341-43 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andronikos III Palaiologos takes charge of a Roman state still recovering from the loss of Anatolia and the raids of the Catalans. He takes on the challenge with enthusiasm and tangles with the Turks, Latins and Serbs. He also reunites Epiros and Thessaly with Constantinople. Period: 1328-41 Check out my episodes on the First Crusade which have been turned into videos by @Empire-Builders Hosted on...

This is part two of my Q&A with Father John Strickland. We talk about the Protestant reformation, Autocephalous churches and connections to Byzantium amongst other topics. John is the pastor of an Orthodox Church in Poulsbo in Washington State. He wrote a four-volume series about the history of Christian civilization called Paradise and Utopia. He’s also recorded a podcast of the same name as...

This episode is brought to you by Telepaideia, a collection of live online courses in Latin, Ancient Greek, and the classical humanities offered by The Paideia Institute. Visit www.paideiainstitute.org/telepaideia to browse the course catalogue and register!    It’s my pleasure today to welcome back Father John Strickland to the podcast. Four episodes ago we talked in detail about the Di...

This Saturday – the 8th February 2025 is the Intelligent Speech online conference. A gathering of fellow history podcasters. Who will be talking about Deception – lies and forgeries. There are 3 keynote speakers in Jo Hedwig Teeuwisse, Otto English and Wesley Livesay. Along with a host of fun roundtables packed with podcasting talent. I will be on two panels. They are back to back so from 11 am –...

This episode is brought to you by Telepaideia, a collection of live online courses in Latin, Ancient Greek, and the classical humanities offered by The Paideia Institute. Visit www.paideiainstitute.org/telepaideia to browse the course catalogue and register!  I interview David Hendrix the man behind the incredible website ' The Byzantine Legacy .' It was David who showed me around Istanbul wh...

Happy New Year. I have two interviews coming out shortly for you to enjoy. One with David Hendrix of the Byzantine Legacy website ( www.thebyzantinelegacy.com ) and a return visit from Father John Strickland to answer more questions about Orthodoxy.   Both those episodes are being sponsored by Telepaideia. a collection of live online courses in Latin, Ancient Greek, and the classical humaniti...

We look at listener questions about feudalism, the Catalans, the Armenians and many other topics.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We look at listener questions about Andronikos II. Why was he so useless? Why did no one overthrow him? How poor was the Empire? And many more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I have another 3 things to tell you. Tomorrow, as in Sunday 1st December, I will be hosting 3 Zoom Calls for Patrons, where you can ask me anything. This is a reminder for those of you already on Patreon. And if you’re not but want to get on the call then you could just sign up for $1 and join in the conversation. The calls are at 2pm, 5pm and 8pm in Coordinated Universal Time. Which is essentiall...

It's time we talked about Orthodoxy in more detail. I ask Father John Strickland to explain the Divine Liturgy, and it's Byzantine origins, to me. John is the pastor of an Orthodox Church in Poulsbo in Washington State. He has also written a four-volume series about the history of Christian civilization called Paradise and Utopia. And he’s recorded a podcast of the same name as an accompaniment to...

Marco Cappelli, the man behind the Storia D'Italia podcast, has created a Roman history comic book. Ammianus - the Twilight of an Era tells the story of the incredible change that took place across Italy during the 6th century. The comic is so good it made me cry. I interview Marco about why he decided to make this and where the inspiration came from. Get your own copy in Italian, English or Latin...

Professor Nicholas Morton returns to tell us about developments on the sea during the Crusading era. We discuss why Venice, Genoa, Pisa and Amalfi were able to dominate the waves. And talk about the ships they used and how they fought. Dr Morton is Associate Professor in Middle Eastern and Global history at Nottingham Trent University in the UK. His new book  The Mongol Storm: Making and Brea...

Hello everyone, Here are 3 podcast-related things you may be interested in. Roman Graphic Novel Friend of the show Marco Capelli has made a comic book set in 6th century Italy. It follows two figures that we know about from an Ostrogothic jewellery collection that was discovered in 1938. A Roman Patrician Stephanus who marries a Gothic noblewoman Valatrud. They are subjects of King Theodoric...

When Andronikos' son dies he ponders whether to disinherit his Grandson Andronikos III. This prompts two bouts of civil war as the younger generation try to force change on their elders. Period: 1310-1328 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.