The Medieval Podcast

In the Middle Ages, falconry was one of the most popular pastimes across the known world. More than just a pleasant diversion in the countryside, it was a way to show status, education, sophistication, and leadership. This week, Danièle speaks with Yannis Hadjinicolaou about why falconry was so widely beloved, and such a popular metaphor for both love and power.You can support this podcast on Patreon - go to https://www.patreon.com/medievalists

In the eleventh-century, Iberia was in the process of evolving networks of tiny villages into the powerful kingdoms we recognize from the end of the medieval period – sometimes by any means necessary. This week, Danièle speaks with Simon Doubleday about the ways in which Queen Sancha and King Fernando I shaped northern Spain and Portugal.Danièle's online course - Calamity and Change: An Introduction to the Fourteenth Century - begins on September 6th. Sign up at https://medievalstudies.thinkific.com/courses/calamity-and-change

When someone evokes the medieval – in conversation or in media – they’re looking for you to feel something. So, the question becomes what are they trying to get you to feel? And how are they accomplishing it? This week, Danièle speaks with Usha Vishnuvajjala about some of the surprising places the medieval world pops up in the modern world, and how it’s perfectly okay to love medieval fiction.Sign up for Calamity and Change: An Introduction to the Fourteenth Century at https://medievalstudies.thinkific.com/courses/calamity-and-change

In this engaging discussion, Anthony Bale, a Professor of medieval studies and author, shares his insights on how medieval people traveled for various reasons. He unveils fascinating stories of mishaps on the road, delves into the experiences of travelers like Afanasi Nikitin, who embraced foreign cultures, and explores the impact of medieval writings on our understanding of travel today. Bale also connects these historical journeys to modern perceptions, shedding light on the enduring allure and challenges of exploration.

Ever come across a really amazing historical fact on the internet or in school, and tell it to all your friends, only to find out that it actually isn’t true? This week, Danièle speaks with Jo Hedwig Teeuwisse (aka the Fake History Hunter) about things that never happened, what it’s like to hunt fake history, and what really grinds her gears.You can support this podcast on Patreon - go to https://www.patreon.com/medievalists

If we need proof of how wonderful both baldness and beards are, we need only to cast our eyes back to the Middle Ages, where people were writing rhetorical arguments, alliterative poetry, and even learned sermons on the virtues of masculine hair. This week, Danièle speaks with Joseph McAlhany about these hilarious medieval texts, why people wrote them, and how seriously we're supposed to take them.Learn more about Danièle's online course at https://medievalstudies.thinkific.com/courses/calamity-and-change

People have lots of different words they use to describe crusaders, but for those living in the Holy Land during the crusades, "criminals" might just be the first word that came to mind. This week, Daniele speaks with Steve Tibble about why there was so much crime committed by men who were supposed to be holy warriors, and what people did about it.You can enroll in online medieval studies courses, including one by Daniele, at Thinkific - go to https://medievalstudies.thinkific.com/

In honour of the 250th episode of The Medieval Podcast, Danièle shares some fun and favourite trivia about the Middle Ages collected over five years of podcasting.You can sign up for Danièle's course, Calamity and Change: An Introduction to the Fourteenth Century at https://medievalstudies.thinkific.com/courses/calamity-and-change

Not knowing the future is an intensely uncomfortable experience, which is why humans invented a clever system to predict the future through numbers, called onomancy. This week, Danièle speaks with Jo Edge about how onomancy works, who used it, and how it fit in with medieval theology.You can support this podcast on Patreon - go to https://www.patreon.com/medievalists

Medieval citizens took steps to actively avoid living in filth. But how did they accomplish it? What were some of the ground rules? And how did this change when your city was also surrounded by water? This week, Danièle speaks with Jane Stevens Crawshaw about environmental policies in fourteenth and fifteenth-century Genoa and Venice.You can support this podcast on Patreon - go to https://www.patreon.com/medievalists