Villains and Virgins History Podcast
Recent Episodes
Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Second Crusade Ep 2: A Total Debacle
The Second Crusade leaves Europe under the command of two kings, fielding the largest number of men in a generation. Eleanor of Aquitaine rides with her husband, King Louis VII of France, while Conrad Hohenstaufen leads forces from the...
The Second Crusade Ep 1: Eleanor of Aquitaine, the medieval queen who went to war
The Second Crusade would be a disaster, but why did it happen and how did it get started? The call to arms was preached by a closet dwelling ascetic who happened to be the leading churchman of his generation–...
Templars Ep 2: The Fiery End
The Templars began as warrior monks, but have been linked to everything from demon worship to forbidden sexual practices. What happened? This episode follows the history of the spectacular fall of a knightly order. A power struggle between a...
Templars Ep 1: The Rise of the Knights Templar
The Knights Templar are surrounded by legends and conspiracy theories. Who were they actually? This episode tracks the Templars from their inception as an order of warrior monks in the Crusader state of Jerusalem, to their astonishing expansion into...
The First Crusade Ep 4: Rise of the Crusader Kings
The Crusaders have taken Jerusalem but they face one final battle. When the men start to head home, the legend of the First Crusade is born, and a massive new wave of Crusaders heads east. Not everyone wants to...
The First Crusade Ep 3: Jerusalem in Flames
The Crusaders narrowly escape annihilation when they attempt to fight their way out of Antioch. Some men credit the miracle of the Holy Lance for their amazing escape. Divisions emerge amongst the nobles, while the army starves. Some Crusaders...
The First Crusade Ep 2: Siege of Antioch
As Western knights and nobles ride toward Jerusalem, there are many other cities they must take along the way. Their first battlefield encounter with the Turks leaves a lasting impression on both sides, but they are soon occupied with...
The First Crusade: Call to Arms
The First Crusade became the stuff of legend soon after it finished. Western knights headed to Constantinople and ultimately to Jerusalem, to rescue pilgrimage sites from the control of Muslim invaders. The crusade involved close to 100,000 people from...
Knights, Jousts, and Courtly Love
The image of the knight in shining armour has had a very long shadow in Western culture, from King Arthur to Monty Python. The reality of life for medieval knights, obsessed with honour and reputation is the subject of this...
Camino de Santiago and Medieval Pilgrimage
The Camino de Santiago pilgrimage is exploding in popularity these days, but the modern travellers are part of a tradition that is over 1000 years old. How did the Camino begin? Why did medieval people go on pilgrimages anyway? ...
Empire of the Franks Ep 2: The Vikings Attack
The grandsons of Charlemagne slide into civil war, with thousands of Franks killing each other over the division of the empire. Though the Treaty of Verdun ends the bloodletting, Frankish troubles are far from over. Vikings sail up the...
Empire of the Franks Ep 1: Grit and Steel
Both the Germans and the French trace their origins to Charlemagne and the Franks. But who were the Franks, and how did they have such a powerful effect on the shape of Western Europe? This episode is a family...
Normans in Italy EP 3: King of Sicily
Roger II has played a high stakes game to secure his crown. Now a king, he must face the consequences of backing the wrong Pope. Rebellious barons, treacherous in-laws, and the loss of his beloved wife burden him as...
Normans in Sicily EP 2: Roger II
Roger II inherits his father’s position as ruler of Sicily and begins to take over parts of Southern Italy as well. Along the way a daring plan leads Norman knights out of a desperate situation, and a Crusader king...
Norman Sicily EP 1: When the Vikings Invaded Italy
The Vikings terrorised coastal Europe in their longboats, plundering and killing as they went. Some of them were offered a deal: they could accept land and settle in France, in exchange for defending the area from other raiders. These...
The Peasant’ War Part 2: Bloodbath
The Peasants’ War was the largest peasant uprising prior to the French Revolution. Hundreds of thousands of ordinary people organise a labour strike and dare to demand a measure of fairness. They use the ideas of Martin Luther and...
The Peasants’ War Part 1: Before the Bloodbath
This is the story of the biggest peasant uprising prior to the French Revolution. Inspired by the writing of Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, it was a shocking challenge to the social order. Serfs occupied castles, executed nobles,...
The Reformation Episode 5: Wars of Religion
The Wars of Religion are the bloody outcome of the religious fracturing of Europe. They reshaped political identity and redefined the balance of power among countries. But what actually happened and why does it matter? This episode is a...
The Reformation: EP 4- England Kills a King
In this episode we watch England execute a king. This is the strange tale of how England became a Protestant country, and why the Church of England is the way it is. Along the way we watch militant Scottish...
Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Second Crusade Ep 3: A Scandal for the Ages
The dwindling army of the Second Crusade arrives in Antioch, where a quarrel over military strategy is influenced by rumours of a sex scandal involving the Queen of France. The Crusaders make some very bad decisions, leading to a...