The Explorers Podcast

Matt Breen
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Oct 13, 2026 • 45min

Walter Raleigh - Part 7 - 13 years in the Tower, and back to Guyana

In part 7 of our series, Raleigh will spend 13 years in the Tower of London, only to be released to make a return to Guyana to - again - search for the legendary city of El Dorado. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Oct 6, 2026 • 35min

Walter Raleigh - Part 6 - Plots, treason and executions

In Part 6, Essex goes off the rails and plots seizing the throne. Then the death of Elizabeth sends Raleigh's fortunes into a downward spiral that will lead to charges of treason. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Sep 29, 2026 • 33min

Walter Raleigh - Part 5 - The sacking of Cadiz - and two more Spanish Armadas

The war with Spain continues. Raleigh is badly injured in the attack and sacking of Cadiz, and King Philip organizes not just one new armada - but two - to try and finally overthrow Elizabeth. Meanwhile, Robert Devereux - the Earl of Essex - gets bolder and more powerful. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Sep 9, 2026 • 37min

Walter Raleigh - Part 4 - The Search for El Dorado

Walter Raleigh risks his fortune and royal standing on a perilous search for El Dorado in Guyana. The journey brings river battles, jungle hardships, Indigenous alliances, Spanish resistance, and tantalizing tales of golden kingdoms. As war and political setbacks derail his plans, the legendary city remains elusive, while Guyana’s real riches lie far beyond Raleigh’s dreams.
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Aug 31, 2026 • 39min

Walter Raleigh - Part 3 - War with Spain, the fate of the Roanoke Colony, and secret marriages

Walter Raleigh prepares England for the Spanish Armada while clashing with the Earl of Essex. The mystery of the vanished Roanoke colonists deepens, and a secret marriage to Bess brings Raleigh imprisonment and royal disgrace. Treasure, exile, political rivalry, and an ambitious search for El Dorado round out this dramatic chapter.
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Aug 18, 2026 • 36min

Walter Raleigh - Part 2 - Virginia Colony and the growing Spanish threat

In part 2 of our series, Raleigh rises up at the court of Queen Elizabeth. He also begins series of expeditions to North America - to try and establish the first permanent English settlement in the New World. While all that happens, the military might of King Phillip and Spain looms on the horizon. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Aug 11, 2026 • 34min

Walter Raleigh - Part 1 - soldier, privateer, and courtier

Walter Raleigh would be one of the most recognizable person of the Elizabethan era. He was a soldier, explorer, adventurer, writer, poet and favorite of Queen Elizabeth. In part one of our story, we look at his humble beginnings, including his time as a solder in France and Ireland, a stint as a privateer, and finally a fixture in the cutthroat world of Queen Elizabeth's court. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Jul 21, 2026 • 32min

Stephen Bishop and the Exploration of Mammoth Cave

In the mid-1800s, Stephen Bishop - a slave - would emerge as one of the greatest cavers in history due to his explorations of Mammoth Cave - the world's most extensive cave system. Despite his status as an enslaved person, he became famous in his lifetime as a daring, fearless, intelligent, and engaging guide and explorer. This is a single-episode topic. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Jul 7, 2026 • 39min

Heinrich Barth - Part 7 - Journey home and later years

A final look at Barth's grueling Sahara crossing north to Tripoli and his long-awaited return to Europe. Tensions, thefts, and hard choices as he secures permission and funds to leave Bornu. The struggle to publish a massive five-volume travelogue and the mixed honors, financial failures, and fraught relations with geographic institutions. Reflections on his later academic life, travels, and legacy.
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Jun 25, 2026 • 37min

Heinrich Barth - Part 6 - Sheikh Ahmad al-Bakkay al-Kunti and Timbuktu

Barth has reached the legendary city of Timbuktu. But now he is trapped - as local rulers set out to capture - or kill - the Christian who has dared to come to their lands. But Barth forms a unique friendship with Sheikh Ahmad al-Bakkay al-Kunti - who protects our explorer. Then, after nearly nine months - he finally will set off for Bornu - only to find that everyone believes him to be dead. Thus, to get home, he must march 1,500 miles through hostile lands with no money or supplies, and fighting increasingly debilitating illnesses. Sponsors: Quince. Get free shipping with your order by using code EXPLORERS at quince.com/explorers The Explorers Podcast is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com Interested in advertising on the Explorers Podcast? Email us at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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