The British History Podcast

In early February of 1102 Queen Matilda was giving birth.  The post 494 – Power Struggles: Part One first appeared on The British History Podcast.

The Treaty penned at Alton had avoided outright war, but it wasn’t truly official.  It needed to be finalized at Winchester. The post 493 – The Price of Peace first appeared on The British History Podcast.

In 1668, John Dryden became England’s very first Poet Laureate.  But he had a rival.  No, not just a rival.  A nemesis. This man’s name was Thomas Shadwell, and I can’t overstate how much Dryden hated him. The post 492 – The War for Perception first appeared on The British History Podcast.

Much respect to u/AnnieCamOG for coming up with this title. The post Project 1095 first appeared on The British History Podcast.

Duke Robert Curthose was back in Normandy, having  reclaimed the Duchy unopposed… and now he was looking to assert his claim on England. The post 491 – All Hats On Deck first appeared on The British History Podcast.

King Henry’s first Christmas Court in the closing days of 1100 had felt…off.  The post 490 – Messengers from France first appeared on The British History Podcast.

Ok, let’s face it, last year was a lot.  Rampant corruption, threats of war, tyrannical leaders, actual war, a greedy feckless aristocracy, rulers weaponizing the legal system, rulers completely disregarding the legal system, rulers making grandiose promises they had no interest in actually delivering on, international intrigue, at least one incredibly suspicious death, and finally […] The post 489 – From Normandy With Love first appeared on The British History Podcast.

By popular request, we’re releasing the full member’s episode on The Authoritarians. The post Bonus Episode: The Authoritarians first appeared on The British History Podcast.

We did it, it’s the year  1100…which means it’s time for us to take a moment and  place our story in the broader context of global human history.  Now, as always, this won’t be exhaustive… nor ultra detailed. Our only intent is to break the  myopia that’s inherent in any history podcast and give you […] The post 488 – The Year 1100 first appeared on The British History Podcast.

Edith, the daughter of King Malcolm Canmore, has appeared from time to time in our story and (by this point) she was about 20 years old… and many of those years had been weird ones. The post 487 – Stealing a Wife From God first appeared on The British History Podcast.

It’s time to hit REI and get some gear… because we’re going on a journey of self discovery in this sample of the newest Member’s Episode. The post Pilgrimage Sample first appeared on The British History Podcast.

The cart carrying the body of King Rufus eventually reached the cathedral at Winchester. And if we are to believe Malmesbury,  blood had been dripping from it from the forest all the way into the Cathedral.  Though, at some point it must have stopped. I mean, even if no one… ya know… sorted it out, he would have run out of blood eventually.

That moment when DIY turns into DIWHYHASGODFORSAKENME The post Tech Issues, We Got Em first appeared on The British History Podcast.

Zee runs us through the events and it’s… a lot. The post The First Crusade Sample first appeared on The British History Podcast.

It was a calm August afternoon in Winchester.   The Royal Palace (or potentially the Conqueror’s castle… our scribes aren’t precise when discussing the location, but probably the Palace)... either way, Winchester would have been full of activity,  but nothing out of the ordinary.  Just Royal functionaries carrying out their duties while the King was away, and townsfolk going about their business.

Ok, when we left off, Rufus threw a big “look at me” celebration… and the prevailing response appears to have been “yeah, man. We see you.” And that wasn’t even the worst part of his year.

The final two years of the 11th century feel like someone was trying to tie up a bunch of plotlines before the start of season 12. Things are moving fast, everybody is suddenly in different countries, and inevitably…some of these characters aren’t having their contracts renewed.

Alright. When we left off, I mentioned that while Rufus was in Normandy, things in England had been getting interesting in his absence. Let's start with Bishop Walkelin.

When we left off, Rufus and Robert of Belleme were marching upon Maine.  Specifically, Count Helias’ fortress at Danguel. This fortress made military incursions and raids into Maine insanely difficult.  Which Rufus and Robert found deeply inconsiderate, so it would have to be brought down or, at the very least it would have to be occupied by good honest Normans who wouldn’t interfere with the King’s god given right to raid and pillage the people of Maine.

Alright, so when we left off Edgar (the eldest living son of Malcolm Canmore) had claimed the throne of Scotland.  But, in classic medieval style, the way that Edgar had gone about that was anything but simple. Edgar had taken the throne from his  Uncle, King Donald III, and to pull that off  Edgar had the help of another uncle Edgar the AEtheling - who happened to be the guy he was named after -  as well as King Rufus of England… and with their support, King Donald III was forced into exile.