The great siege of Malta: Knights Hospitaller vs the Ottoman empire
In the summer of 1565, the might of the Ottoman empire faced off against a few hundred Knights Hospitaller and their allies on the island of Malta. The outcome might have seemed inevitable but the eve...
22 Apr 202535min
Joanna Plantagenet: life of the week
Richard the Lionheart is well-known for his travels to distant lands, time on crusade, and wrangling with international politics… But, less well known is the fact that his sister, Joanna Plantagenet (...
21 Apr 202551min
Suleyman the Magnificent's bid for world domination
Henry VIII lorded it over England. Francis I dominated France. Charles V was the main man in central Europe. Yet arguably none was as powerful as Ottoman sultan Suleyman the Magnificent – a true heavy...
20 Apr 202535min
The Etruscans: everything you wanted to know
Lasting from the ninth century BC right up until Roman conquest in the first century BC, the Etruscans were a powerful ancient civilisation who inhabited Etruria in ancient Italy, and rubbed shoulders...
19 Apr 202552min
Lexington and Concord: 250 years on
On 19 April 1775, American militia and British regulars clashed at Lexington and Concord in what would become the first battles of the Revolutionary War. But, as historian George Goodwin reveals, the ...
17 Apr 202541min
The botanists of besieged Leningrad
Cut off from the outside world and with food and other essentials dwindling, it's estimated that upwards of one million people died. Yet throughout this ordeal, a group of indomitable scientists riske...
15 Apr 202536min
The Brothers Grimm: life of the week
From Snow White to Sleeping Beauty, the Brothers Grimm are best known for collecting and curating fairy tales. But, as Ann Schmiesing reveals, recording these stories for posterity was only one of the...
14 Apr 202535min
Could the US have won the Vietnam war?
When US forces entered Vietnam, the nation's leaders believed they could contain communism and secure victory. Instead, they found themselves trapped in a war that drained resources, divided the count...
13 Apr 202555min
