The English Heritage Podcast

This week we’re investigating some of the medieval beliefs and practices that existed to keep illness and death at bay in the Middle Ages. At a time when good health was far from guaranteed, discover how many people turned to England’s monasteries as the healthcare providers of the day, while others put their faith in magic, miracles and the supernatural.Joining us to reveal more are senior properties historian, Dr Michael Carter and Professor Catherine Rider from the University of Exeter’s Department of History.To watch our video about medieval medicine, go to youtu.be/fuEuaSmDOec Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As English Heritage launches an appeal to repair and restore the 13,000 historic windows at their sites, we’re joined by senior estates manager Nicola Duncan Finn, senior properties historian Steven Brindle and properties curator Kristian Kaminski to find out what is happening and why.Discover the stories of the windows that witnessed and illuminated some of our most renowned history, from the attempted escape of Charles I and the revolutionary experiments of Charles Darwin to the final days of Queen Victoria. Plus, learn why over one million pounds’ worth of repairs will be needed in the next five years and the traditional techniques and skills required to save them.To learn more about the historic windows appeal, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/windows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we're joined by food historian Dr Annie Gray to discover the story of a delicious everyday foodstuff: butter – and some of the historic dairies where it was produced. Learn when it was first produced, when and why it became a staple food and who the biggest butter lovers in English history were. Plus, discover the stories of the butter-producing dairies and farms at Kenwood, Audley End, Wrest Park, Osborne, Brodsworth Hall and Boscobel House.To watch our video about how to make butter the Victorian way, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=DV7hop4m0YQ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we explore the historic journey of two refugees from slavery and campaigners for its abolition, who escaped from America to England. Ellen and William Craft ended up in London – and now, more than 170 years after they arrived, a blue plaque marks their former home in Hammersmith.Joining us to discuss their journey to England and abolitionist campaigns are English Heritage’s senior historian for blue plaques, Howard Spencer, and Dr Hannah-Rose Murray, a research fellow at the University of Edinburgh, specialising in the history of enslaved people.To learn more about the Crafts, go to https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/ellen-and-william-craft/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re discussing how art is being used to explore the link between Brodsworth Hall and the transatlantic slave trade. The property and its gardens near Doncaster in South Yorkshire will be hosting a collection of five sculptures created by artist Carl Gabriel and inspired by the story of Peter Thellusson, a former owner of the estate who made his fortune from goods connected with slave-based production and the slave trade itself.Joining us to explain more are senior interpretation manager Joe Savage and historian, archivist and researcher John Angus Martin.To learn more about Brodsworth Hall and Gardens or to plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/brodsworth Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we’re gearing up for the Battle of Hastings. Or at least, its re-enactment next month by 500 history enthusiasts in the location where this key turning point in English history took place. Of course, many of us know the story, including that unforgettable date: 1066. But what happened in the build-up to the battle, and who had the strongest claim to be king?Joining us to answer these questions and more are senior properties curator Roy Porter and curator of collections and interiors Dr Kathryn Bedford.To learn more about the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Conquest, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/1066-and-the-norman-conquest Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the nights draw in and the leaves start to turn, we’re joined by Professor of History at the University of Bristol Ronald Hutton, to discuss some of the traditions that come with autumn. Discover the history behind Bonfire Night and Halloween, along with less well-known events such as Harvest Home and Lammas – and the origins of the word ‘autumn’ itself.For the best English Heritage gardens to visit during autumn, go to https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/historic-gardens/english-heritage-gardens-in-autumn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we’re discussing a new archaeological excavation that is hoped to help expand our understanding of Roman occupation in the south-east of England. Richborough Roman Fort in Kent is perhaps one of the most symbolically important Roman sites in Britain, as it marked both the beginning and the end of Roman rule. And given that it witnessed these dramatic events, it seems only fitting that archaeologists will be revisiting the remains of its amphitheatre for clues about Richborough’s past.Joining us to discuss the excavation and the site’s history are senior properties historian Paul Pattison and senior archaeologist for Historic England Tony Willmott.To learn more about Richborough Roman Fort and Amphitheatre or to plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/richborough Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re joined by English Heritage interpretation manager Nadine Langford and landscape advisor Emily Parker to discuss the vital role Charles Darwin’s home in Kent played in helping him to develop his theory of evolution by natural selection. Much of his garden at Down House was used to conduct experiments, which were arguably just as important as his observations on his Beagle voyage.Discover how Darwin transformed the garden into a living laboratory, the experiments he conducted and how these are being brought to life through a new visitor experience.To learn more about Down House or to plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/downhouse Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we’re taking a dip into the history of the most Roman of daily rituals: bathing. This practice of personal care left its mark across a number of English Heritage sites. These include the baths in the forts along Hadrian’s Wall in northern England and the vast bathing complex in the Roman city of Wroxeter in Shropshire.Joining us to discuss how and why the Romans bathed – and to give us a tour of some of the bathhouses they built to do so – are Properties Historian Dr Andrew Roberts and Collections Curator Cameron Moffett.To learn more about English Heritage Roman sites or to plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/about-us/our-places/roman-sites Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices