Villains and Virgins History Podcast

This episode covers the sordid and sickeningly fast story of Anne Boleyn's fall from grace.  It has rumor, scandal, and a completely hilarious introduction to the codpiece.  This is also the moment that Henry VIII begins to resemble the ruthless monster that he has become in popular imagination.  With Anne's position hanging precariously, what will be the fate of Protestantism in England?

The woman who is blamed for turning Henry VIII from a most Catholic king into the one who separated Tudor England from the Catholic Church was a dark eyed stunner named Anne Boleyn.  This is the story of how a king overturned the institutions of his country to get a divorce.  It is also the story of a more complex king than the Henry VIII you think you know.  

You may think you know all about Henry VIII, but the version of his life that gets passed around focuses on an obese maniac who married and divorced or beheaded quite a number of women.  There is much more to the story than that.  In this series we look at Henry the Renaissance man and his bold Spanish queen, against the dazzling backdrop of Europe in the grip of seismic changes.  Henry himself wi...

This episode uncovers the forgotten history of some of the most badass women you've never heard of.  The Kingdom of Dahomey in West Africa had all female army units who consistently fought better and more courageously than the men.  Their deeds of bravery are recorded by their admiring enemies.  These real women are the inspiration for the Dora Milaje of Wakanda in the Marvel movies.  Meet the Bla...

We know the Greek legends of the Amazons, but because the warrior women were real the Greeks were not the only ones telling stories about them.  In this episode we uncover legends of women fighters from the Caucasus, and the epic Persian love story of Shirin and Khusraw.  Adventure, love, and revenge...these are amazing stories you have probably never heard.  

The legends of the Amazons are based on real women who could ride, hunt, shoot bows, and fight.  In this episode we uncover the fascinating archaeological evidence on the horse tribes of the steppe and the women warriors who lived among them.  From tattoos to cannabis, there are so many surprising details.   

Stories of badass warrior women continue to fascinate us today, as they did the ancient Greeks.  In Greek stories the Amazons were a tribe of all female warriors who were formidable in combat and fascinating for their bravery, athleticism, and beauty.  But the Amazons are not a myth.  They were real people in history, and their stories can change the way we look at ourselves.  This episode introdu...

After suffering horrifying violence and theft at the hands of the Romans, Boudica decides enough is enough.  This is the story of a woman who led a rebellion against Roman occupation, preferring to risk death in battle rather than a life of slavery.  Her battle cry continues to echo through history.   Find out why.

What happened when the Romans invaded Britain?  What did life under occupation look like for the native tribes?  In this episode we cover the Roman policies and projects that changed the face of Britain.  A Celtic queen starts an affair and honors an alliance that will end her rule.  The Romans decide to teach another uppity Celtic woman a lesson, and inadvertently light a match that explodes into...

What was Britain like before the Romans made contact?  The world of the Celts, with its wild blue Northerners, Druids, and sacrifices is painted here, setting the stage for one of the most astonishing female figures in British history.  Her name is Boudica, and she is the warrior queen. This is the first of several episodes about her world and her story.

Many fierce warrior tribes have emerged from the Eurasian Steppe, from the Huns to the Mongols and many others.  What made these people such effective fighters?  Learn about Mongolian wrestling, archery, and the most dangerous game on Earth.  In this episode we look at the warlike sports that began on the Steppe and continue to this day.  

In this final episode of our series, Attila takes a massive army and storms through western Europe to the gates of Orleans, in France.  The epic Battle of the Catalaunian Plains unfolds over two days, as old allies become enemies.  A shocking twist leads to an ending no one expected.

In this episode we learn about Hunnish women and marriage practices.  A sex scandal breaks out in the Western Imperial Court, leading to pregnancy and execution.  A Roman princess makes a shocking proposal to Attila that threatens to destabilize the Roman Empire.

In this episode we see an imperial princess kidnapped, and an attempt to steal the Western Imperial throne goes wrong.  The Huns become famous for extortion and impalement.  An assassination plot backfires horribly.

Attila the Hun still looms in our memory, though less and less is remembered about the man himself and the fierce people he led.  This episode introduces the Huns of history, paints the world they inhabited, and sets the stage for the emergence of Attila.  From unique battle tactics to cranial deformation, this is an amazing group of people.

After a century of scandal, a new Pope takes over in Rome.  Leo IX has sweeping plans for reform, and then gets taken prisoner by Norman warriors.  Meanwhile church controversies brew over everything from beards to communion bread until an explosive collision of personalities leads to drama in the Hagia Sophia itself.  The moment that changed the Christian world forever is explained here.

A teenaged boy inherits the Papacy and the keys to Rome, and begins a career of wild partying.  John XII plays power games with dangerous military leaders, and attempts to backstab the most powerful warrior in Europe.  The House of Theophylact continues to create scandal, selling the Papacy itself to an Italian godfather.  It's Game of Thrones in the Vatican.

Historians have called this period the "pornocracy".  Find out why in this episode, when the powerful and ambitious women of the House of Theophylact take over Rome and control the Papacy.  Sex, murder, blindings and treachery, it's a wild ride through the Dark Ages.

In 1054 an event occurred that split the Christian world.  It has never recovered.  In this mini series, we dive into the world before the Great Schism, to understand the forces that created the institutions of the Church and then tore them apart.   How did we get Popes anyway?  Emperors, bishops, and warriors... this is the world at the end of the Roman Empire and the beginning of the Middle Ages...

"Devil's marks would often be found 'in their secretest parts, and therefore require diligent and careful search'". The witch trials in Salem involved strip searching and inspecting the bodies of accused women for any detail that could be used as evidence of a pact with the Devil. The process of the court was designed to eliminate any defense. In this episode we cover how the infamous Salem Witch...

"What is the name of your demon lover?" "How many years have you been a witch?" These were the types of questions hurled at people accused of witchcraft in a small town in New England. A group of young girls suffer mysterious ailments and soon the whole community is in an uproar.

"Innocent have I come into prison... innocent have I been tortured... innocent must I die. For whoever comes into the witch prison must ...be tortured until he invents something out of his head." These lines come from a letter written by a father to his daughter in 1628, as the witch craze raged across Europe. In this episode we cover this horrifying period of history and explore what caused so ma...

"Witchcraft comes from carnal lust, which is in women insatiable." - from the Malleus Maleficarum, the 1486 witch manual. Bodies swing from the gallows in the small town of Salem in New England.  People have been executed on charges of witchcraft in America.  How did we get to this? The story starts in Old Europe... Follow me on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC15u8zpwb_wdfarKIFDfwMw Or...