

The Dark Ages Podcast
Herbert F. Bushman
The history of Europe from 376 and beyond the Fall of Rome.Barbarian invasions, kings, queens, and saints, myths and legends.It’s the history they skipped.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 12, 2025 • 30min
Brunhilda Part 1: Queen Energy
567 to 577
Part one of life of Brunhilda, the Visigothic princess who was regent for three generations of Merovingian rulers.
Autochthonous : adj. Native to the place it is found, i.e. indigenous.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/12/12/61-queen-energy/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Logo Art by Jonas Lau Markussen @jonaslaumarkussen
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Nov 18, 2025 • 30min
60. Carry On, My Wayward Sons
561 to c. 590
We take a look at the utterly baffling fraternal struggles as the descendants of Clovis continue to be unable to get along with each other or their neighbors.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/11/18/60-carry-on-my-wayward-sons/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Nov 4, 2025 • 26min
59. The Life and Lusts of Chlothar I
547-561
The two remaining Merovingian kings, Chlothar and Childebert, rule the now vast lands of the Franks, while warily eying each other. The question of inheritance hangs over everything, and one son decides to betray his father.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/11/19/59-the-life-and-lusts-of-chlothar-the-first/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

May 5, 2025 • 28min
58. Bishops' Gambits
c. 500 to 590
"Bishops move diagonally. That's why they often turn up where the kings don't expect them to be."
- Terry Pratchett, Small Gods
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/05/05/58-bishops-gambits/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Additional Music:
Hildegard of Bingen, “Antiphon for St. Ursula”
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Apr 16, 2025 • 32min
57. The Life and Loves of Theudebert I
516 - 548
One of the strongest of the early Merovingians, Theudebert built a powerful kingdom while squabbling with his uncles and carrying on a complicated personal life.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/04/16/57-the-life-and-loves-of-theudebert-i/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Mar 24, 2025 • 31min
56. The Inheritance of Clovis
511-532
Out of the four sons of Clovis, not one of them was the type to stay at home, or to be content with what he had. In this episode, we’ll abandon chronological accuracy for the moment, to tell stories of each of these kings. Violence, mostly.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
Webpage for this Episode:
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Mar 3, 2025 • 35min
55. Kingdoms of Francia
c. 450 - c. 600
When Clovis, king of the Franks, died in 511, he passed on to his sons a huge territory, containing many millions of people. In this episode, we take a look at those people, how they made their livings, and how they organized society around them.
Links: www.instagram.com/darkagespod
https://www.museedestempsbarbares.fr/le-village-franc/
Webpage for this Episode: https://darkagespod.com/2025/03/03/the-kingdoms-of-francia/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Feb 1, 2025 • 41min
54. Basque-ing in Glory
Basque-ing in Glory
4000 BCE to c. 700 CE
The Western Pyrenees are home to the Basques, a mysterious community who speaks a unique language, and who have been there … for as long as anyone can tell. In this episode we’ll explore their history up through the seventh century, and their relationship to the people who have come and gone around them.
Webpage for this Episode https://darkagespod.com/2025/01/31/54-basque-ing-in-glory/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Jan 14, 2025 • 29min
53. Of Outstanding Goodness
Of Outstanding Goodness
586 to 601 CE
Reccared takes the throne and makes a momentous change. The Visigothic kingdom becomes unified under one religion and climbs to a new level of stability and security.
Webpage for this Episode
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Dec 30, 2024 • 22min
52. A Saintly Prince
A Saintly Prince
578 to 586 CE
Religious differences lead to rebellion and murder, as a Visigothic prince becomes a martyr for Catholicism… or does he?
Webpage for this Episode https://darkagespod.com/2024/12/30/52-a-saintly-prince/
Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod
Title Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com
And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/


