Medieval Archives

Medievalist and Art Historian Dr. Amy Jeffs joins the show to discuss her books  Storyland: A New Mythology of Britain and Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain

In Amy’s first book, Storyland she examines the origins of Britain from Noah’s flood to the Norman invasion. And there are some good stories to tell, including the incredible story of Albina, who ruled Britain, was seduced by demons and gave birth to a race of gi...

Professor and author Nicolas Morton joins the podcast to discuss his book, The Crusader States and their Neighbours.

The Crusader States were founded during the First Crusade. The Crusaders conquered the land and claimed it as their own. There were four Crusader States established during the First Crusade; The County of Edessa, The County of Tripoli, the Principal of Antioch and the Kingdom of Jerusalem. For almost 200 yea...

We are embarking on a new podcasting adventure! Medieval Tales Podcast will be released every Tuesday and Thursday and feature medieval themed classic novels.

The first book in the series is:

The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Black Arrow: A Tale of Two Roses is the 1888 historical adventure novel.

Set in fifteenth century England during the Wars of the Roses, the story revolves around Richard (Dick) Shelt...

Welcome to the Medieval Tales podcast, well, to the trailer at least.

Do you love reading classic novels set in the Middle Ages. Stories of brave Knights and epic battles, royal intrigue and life in a castle? 

Is it getting harder to find  time to sit down and read a good book? With all the cooking and cleaning and commuting. Maybe you have the time and aren’t sure what to read next. Whatever the situation, Medieval Tales...

Professor and author Nicolas Morton joins the podcast to discuss his book, The Mongol Storm.

The Mongol Empire rose to power in the early 1200s, founded by Genghis Khan. At it’s peak the Empire stretched from the Pacific Ocean to the Black Sea, encompassing Korea, Mongolia, China, Russia and portions of Eastern Europe and the Near East.

Nic’s new book The Mongol Storm covers the Mongol Empire and their influence in t...

It’s Halloween again, the air turns colder, the nights grow darker and spirits roam in the shadows. On this year’s Halloween episode we are traveling to the Emerald Isle. In 1324 Kilkenny, Ireland witnessed it’s first witchcraft trial and the first execution carried out by burning at the stake.

Alice Kyteler was a popular, beautiful inn keeper who's husbands had a bad habit of dying mysterious deaths. Her fourth and final ...

Mudlarks

A mudlark is defined as someone who digs or searches in in river or harbor mud for items of value. The term was widely used in 18th and 19th century London. Mudlarks would search the shores of the River Thames during low tide to find valuable items and sell them for a profit. Being a mudlark back then was usually a job for those in extreme poverty. Today things are different.

Mudlarks in the 21st century aren't f...

When people think of the Middle Ages one of the first images that pops into their head is a knight in shining armor. Knights are synonymous with the Middle Ages. Slaying dragons, saving damsels in distress, but beyond the fairy tales are the real life knights. Men who sacrificed and endlessly trained to earn the title of Knight.

On this episode of the Medieval Archives podcast I’m joined by historian and author Christopher...

The witching season is upon us once again. Past Halloweens we’ve covered a Medieval Serial Killer, Medieval Zombies and more. All the Halloween episodes are available on the Halloween Podcast page.

This Halloween we are looking at haunted castles from the Middle Ages. Castles

We’ll visit a handful of castles around England and one in Ireland. Most of the castles today are in Northern England and one isn’t a castle. We’ll s...

The Viking Age​

VIKINGS! The scourge of the early middle ages. Vikings raided England, Ireland and Europe with a ferocity never seen before. On this episode we’re going to look at a few Vikings that you may not have heard of, or know much about. One of them should be taught in every school in America and Europe. They are portrayed as blood thirsty killers who pillage and plunder, but they were also adventuring explorers w...

John II: King of France 1350-1364

King John II of France, called The Good. John ruled during a tumultuous time, the Plague was in full force killing large parts of France’s population, the Hundred Years’ War was raging and France was in financial trouble. With all that going on how did John get dubbed, The Good? We’ll take a look at his rise to the throne, his exploits in battle and on the home front to see if he was truly...

Fight For Profit

Soldiers in the Middle Ages fought for King and Country. But what did they do when the wars ended? Not all soldiers retired back to a life of farming or trade. Some men wanted to continue fighting and they fought for profit

Medieval Mercenaries rose to prominence in the 13th and 14th centuries. The Mercenary Companies were made up of men from every corner of Europe; Germany, France, England, Spain, Scandin...

We hit a milestone this month for the Medieval Archives Podcast. Ten years of podcasting!

Unfortunately the podcast hit an unexpected and lengthy hiatus. But we are coming back this summer!

Along with the 10 year anniversary is a fresh new website. And we're removing all the ads from the website as well!

The new website and renewed podcast will remain ad-free!

There are great lessons ready and planned, looking at the his...

In today's lesson we are joined by author Wayne Bartlett to discuss Richard the Lionheart! Wayne's new book Richard the Lionheart: The Crusader King of England is available through Amberley Publishing. It's an excellent biography and the first biography of Richard the Lionheart in over 40 years!

Wayne and I discuss Richard's upbringing, the Crusades and his war in France. We also cover the women in his life; his powerful mo...

Today's lesson features a talk with historian and author Stephen Spinks. Stephen's new book Edward II The Man: A Doomed Inheritance was recently published by Amberley Publishing. Edward II The Man is an in-depth biography of an often overlooked medieval king. Stephen and I talk about his work with the National Trust, his writing and his new book. It's a fantastic talk and I have a whole new outlook on Edward II, his reign ...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! The Great Plague or Black Death ravaged Europe in the 14th century, killing around 200 million people. No one was immune to the Plague! But as we'll find out in today's episode one man thought his wealth could keep him safe. Today on the Halloween inspired episode we are going to listen to Edgar Allan Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death. It's a story of the lower class suffering while the Nobles stay safe in...

We have a special episode today of medieval inspired music! Ian Churchward and his band The Legendary 10 Seconds write music about Richard III and the Wars of the Roses. Today we are showcasing one of their albums Tant le Desiree, the second album in the Richard III saga. You can find all their music at thelegendary10seconds.co.uk Ian and his band have a new album out called Sunnes and Roses, which focuses on the Wars of t...

Ever wonder how medieval people dealt with natural disasters? No Red Cross or FEMA to come in and help clean up. Earthquakes and Tsunamis are some of the most destructive forces in nature. It's estimated there are over 500,000 earthquakes each year and over 100,000 of them can be felt. Earthquakes in the Middle Ages are some of the most destructive in history. Today on the Medieval Archives Podcast we'll discuss Medieval E...

In 1242 the Teutonic Knights were conquering lands to the east into Novgorod. Pope Gregory IX blessed the Knights in their Crusade to rid Novgorod of the orthodox pagans. Alexander Nevsky and his army had other plans. They intended to defend their country from all invaders. The conflict ended with a fierce battle, called the Battle on the Ice. On a frigid day in April the two armies met on the frozen ice of Lake Peipus. If...