History Hit Podcasts

Who Owns Greenland?

It sounds outlandish that President-Elect Donald Trump has said he wants to buy Greenland but this isn't the first or even second time the United...

Myths of Magna Carta

Did you know that Magna Carta wasn't originally intended as a beacon of civil liberties? Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Steven Franklin of Royal...

History of Red Lipstick

Red lipstick has a unique feminine power to it.

It's been on the lips of some of the most influential people in history, including Cleopatra...

Who Was Sitting Bull?

Sitting Bull, Jumping Badger, Slow - what do we know about the man who went by each of these names? How did he earn them and what was his role in...

Dissolution of the Monasteries

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb explores the dissolution of some 800 monasteries and nunneries by King Henry VIII, a campaign that dramatically...

Topkapi Palace: The Heart of the Ottoman Empire

Associate Professor Nilay Özlü from Istanbul Technical University joins Matt Lewis to help him understand the Ottoman's most significant mark on...

Great Fire of London: Mobs, Firestorms, and Revenge

(2/2) As the Great Fire of London worsens mob rule begins to appear and a hunt for a scapegoat takes over. Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the...

Roald Amundsen

Roald Amundsen was surely one of history's greatest explorers. He beat Scott to the South Pole, and was the first person to reach the North Pole...

Sargon of Akkad

Over 4,000 years ago, Sargon of Akkad carved his name into history by forging what many consider the world’s first empire. But who was this...

Inside the Brothel of Pompeii

Sex work was everywhere in the ancient world, but a known dedicated space for it (a brothel), is an extremely rare and important...

King John: Worst Medieval Monarch?

Nothing good is ever said about King John, a strong contender for the title of Worst Medieval King of England. Was the King who signed Magna Carta...

President FDR & the New Deal

In 1932, amidst the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected the 32nd President of the United States. He was more than a leader; he was...

Final Days of Mary Queen of Scots

The moment Mary Queen of Scots set foot in England, she became Elizabeth I's prisoner. Mary was fleeing from war and misogyny, hoping for help...

Rome's Crisis of the Third Century

What happens when emperors are murdered more often than they die of natural causes? Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr. David Gwynn to unravel the...

Rise of the Borgias

In the 15th and early 16th centuries, one Spanish family rose to exert its influence over Renaissance Italy - the Borgias. Deploying diplomacy,...

How to Survive a Medieval Crusade

What would it have been like to go on a medieval crusade? What dangers would you have faced on the gruelling journey to the Holy Land, and what...

Ancient Eroticism, Pagan Workouts & Body Ideals: History of the Gym

It's January and (reluctant) thoughts turn to gym memberships, but what are the ancient origins of this phenomena?

From the naked workouts...

The Real Lady Macbeth with Val McDermid

Lady Macbeth is best known to us as Shakespeare’s scheming, sleepwalking villain. But, as with most of his so-called history plays,...

The First 12 Days of the Civil War

In April 1861, Union forces having lost the first battle of the Civil War, attention turned to the Confederacy's likely next target - Washington...

Hagia Sophia: Where Worlds Collide

The Hagia Sophia is a landmark that has stood for 1500 years, and that players can clamber all over in Assassin’s Creed Revelations. It is...

Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli’s name has become synonymous with cunning, deceit and a lack of morality to achieve one's goals in politics or business. He...