There's a Time and a Place For That

On the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese calendar, a harvest festival on a scale unlike any other in the world is celebrated, a tradition dating back over 3000 years. In Chang'an, capital of the Tang Dynasty, this Mid-Autumn Festival is sure to be a blast. In 750 CE, western Chang'an is a vibrant city full of local civilians celebrating the moon goddess Chang'e, nobles and burea...

Qin Shi Huang did what no one else had done. By uniting the warring kingdoms of China, he created an empire that would reach out across Asia, even opening trade directly with the mighty Roman and Parthian Empires in the west. The glory days of the Qin and Han Dynasties, however, are gone. But not the Tang's. Over a thousand years ago, they were in a Golden Age that caused science, politics, tr...

The Goths are really working overtime. First they sacked Rome, later they had a whole thing in the 2000s, but more importantly for medieval Paris, they've devised an incredible, soaring architectural style that has left its mark on Europe. We are standing on Ile de la Cité with the heavenly monument of Notre Dame to the east, the graceful Palais de la Cité waiting for us to the west, and the L...

While the era of Crusades draws to a close in the Holy Land, the French are busy living it up back home. At the head of one of Europe's most powerful kingdoms, the city of Paris in the thirteenth century has become a beacon of culture, religion, and architecture. Join us on a leisurely tour of the City of Light eight centuries in the past as we visit the ethereal cathedral of Notre Dame, the r...

Jerusalem. The first capital of the Israelites. The site of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. The location of Muhammad's Night Journey. For centuries it has been an important site of pilgrimage. And also Crusades. Some Crusades. Others didn't quite make it. Let's found out why. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock, and the heavenly Mount of Olives await us in O...

For many medieval believers, Jerusalem was the choice site for pilgrimage. This made it the target of many ambitious rulers, even into our present day, but also transformed it into a vibrant, multicultural city. So, wander with us through the Holy City of Jerusalem in 1192 CE and explore the legendary Mount Zion, the bustling Armenian and Jewish Quarters, the birthplace of a famed knightly order,...

After last time, we have found ourselves within the Imperial Forums of Ancient Rome. Behind us is the Campus Martius, the Pantheon, the Capitoline Hill, and the Curia of Pompey. Before us waits the rest of the bustling Eternal City, a metropolis which will act as the near-mythical cradle of civilisation for medieval Europe. Our gracious host, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, waits for our arrival in the...

On the personal invitation of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Caesar of Rome, we find ourselves on the outskirts of the Eternal City. Built nine centuries ago, this city will see Hellenic and Christian culture spread to nearly all corners of Europe, where it will form the bedrock of medieval, and later modern, European culture. But for now, we are about to explore Ancient Rome as it was at the height o...

Introducing... a new podcast of truly historical proportions! Written and narrated by author Matthew J Ryan, There's a Time and a Place For That will transport you each fortnight to a different city in the distant past. We'll wander the streets of Athens, Baghdad, Chang'an, Paris, and many more in the expanse of our imaginations. With exquisitely detailed descriptions of everything hap...