Attila the Hun: life of the week

Politicians invoke it, activists wield it, and legal thinkers debate what it can offer the modern world. But what does Magna Carta really mean today? In this fourth and final episode of HistoryExtra's...

1 Mar 38min

Slavery in the Islamic world has a diverse and controversial history. Speaking to Emily Briffett, historian and journalist Justin Marozzi explores some of the stories at the heart of his latest book C...

27 Feb 50min

National icons aren’t born – they’re engineered. But how were historical figures such as Joan of Arc and Isabella of Castile transformed into political symbols, their real lives lost beneath centuries...

25 Feb 36min

Widely remembered as the ultimate American inventor, Edison’s greatest talent may have been for self-promotion. In this episode, historian Iwan Morus speaks to Elinor Evans about how Edison built a br...

24 Feb 34min

Captured in Libya, imprisoned in Italy, and twice an escapee: historian Malcolm Gaskill's great-uncle Ralph's experiences of the Second World War were certainly dramatic. Yet he left behind little mor...

23 Feb 43min

As King John was poised to press his seal into the wax of a document whose impact would reverberate for centuries, did he understand the ramifications it would have? And what were the chances he would...

22 Feb 36min

The Victorian period was a time of great economic, cultural and technological change. But what was it like to actually live through it? Speaking to Isabel King, author Jamie Camplin – whose latest boo...

20 Feb 34min

In 1838, a 6ft Cornishman going by the name of Sir William Courtenay led an insurrection in rural Kent. Courtenay claimed he was Jesus Christ – and a lot of people believed him. And when those support...

18 Feb 32min