The History of England
David Crowther
This my re-telling of the story of England. I aim to be honest, and rigorous - but always loving of my country's history. It is a regular, chronological podcast, starting from the end of Roman Britain. There are as many of the great events I can squeeze in, of course, but I also try to keep an eye on how people lived, their language, what was important to them, the forces that shaped their lives and destinies, that sort of thing. To listen free of adverts, support the podcast, access a library of 150+ hours of shedcasts of me warbling on, and get new shedcasts every month, why not become a member at https://thehistoryofengland.co.uk/become-a-member ? You know it makes sense... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 23, 2013 • 31min
88 Politics, scandal, intrigue and turmoil
The period between 1308 and 1311 was dominated by the attempts of the barons to resolve the issues left unsolved from Edward I's reign; and by the scandal and disruption caused by the king's favourite, Piers Gaveston. The conflict and turmoil led to another constitutional shuffle forward with the powers and role of parliament in the Ordinances of 1311. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 16, 2013 • 30min
87 Scandal was brought upon the People
This week, and introduction to Edward II, quite probably the most reviled king in English history. So this week he have a bit of a survey of how history has treated the lad, and the chroniclers that have given him his reputation. And then we kick of the reign. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 10, 2013 • 31min
86 Handing over
In 1305 two Scottish lords had a fall out next to the altar of a church in Dumfries. One them, Robert Bruce, resolved the argument by sticking a knife in the other, John the Red Comyn. Robert then raised the standard of rebellion and with the support of Robert Wishart, and the Scottish war was back on. Two years later, campaigning in Scotland, Edward finally reached the end of his death. Hate him or loathe him, Edward can at least say that no-one could ignore him. And there is something relentless about his tomb and inscription that sums up the man. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 3, 2013 • 36min
85 Crime and Punishment
A digression this week - the state of the crime and punishment in 14th century, and the story of the theft of the crown jewels in 1303. We also get the final and rather gruesome end of William Wallace in 1305. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 19, 2013 • 35min
84 War, Tournaments and Victory
We spend a bit of time in this episode having a bit of a catchup up - about arms, armour and armies, and about warfare for real and for pretend. Despite that we also find time to talk about the seeming final surrender of the Scots in 1305 - so how about that for value then? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 12, 2013 • 34min
83 Crisis
From 1297, things became harder for Edward. The relentless pressure of external wars led to increased taxation. This continuous pressure on the magnates, church and people eventually led to a resistance. Edward's personality didn't help; up to now, he had carried everything before him - now, suddenly, he's faced with the concept of compromise. Meanwhile in the north it's come-uppance time for Wallace at the battle of Falkirk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 30, 2012 • 34min
82 The Sucker Punch
Since the Treaty of Paris in 1259, England and France had been friends, united by a monarchy with close ties and relationships. So when in 1293 a dispute blew up over a sea fight in the Channel, Edward clearly didn't expect it to become a problem. But in fact Phillip IV (the Fair) of France was keen to strengthen the power of the French monarchy - and that didn't include having Gascony controlled by a foreign king. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 22, 2012 • 32min
81 The Great Cause
Through a stunning piece of bad luck, Alexander III left no heirs. And now there was no clear successor to his throne of Scotland. For the search for the right successor, the Scottish Guardians of the Realm turned to Scotland's friend - England. But Edward had other plans - for him this was a great opportunity to revive the claims of the kings of England to be overlords of all Britain. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 2, 2012 • 31min
80 In which we Dawdle
When Edward I arrived back in 1289 from Gascony, he was in many ways at the height of his awesomeness. A chivalric monarch, a leading stateman in Christendom, and at least partly responsible for legal reforms, that will cause a historian to call him 'the English Justinian'. But he also had problems. He was strapped for cash. There was a background of discontent against the firmness of Edward's rule. But Edward was a clever politician as well as a chivalric monarch, and knew how to negotiate his way back to popularity - and it would not be good news for England's Jewish community. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 24, 2012 • 32min
79 Conqueror and Statesman
The second Anglo Welsh war was very different in character to the first. Here was a genuinely national uprising against rule by the English. Here was a war with no compromise - where Edward clearly decided from the start that the only long term issue was complete conquest. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
