Oldest Stories

Today we examine the situation in the Levant from the Bronze age Collapse to the entry of the Assyrians, and then follow Shalmaneser's levantine campaigns as they reshape the region through violence a...

14 Aug 202441min

A big transition of power as Shalmaneser peacefully takes the crown from his psychotic father, then immediately heads north for some war crimes. Big discussion today about how the Assyrian empire real...

31 Juli 202438min

From the Tigris River to the Mediterranian Sea, Assurnasirpal completes the greatest campaign any Mesopotamian king has managed since the time of Sargon the Great, nearly 1500 years prior. Made possib...

17 Juli 202435min

Bonus episode today, a bit of a crossover with the bronze age stuff I am doing on Youtube about the video game Total War Pharaoh. Despite that, I think it will be of general enough interest to go on t...

3 Juli 202426min

Today we look at the psychology and genius of Assurnasirpal and get a good look at both the strengths and weaknesses of the Assyrian terror-based governance strategy. A massive feast will be held, the...

19 Juni 202436min

Today we pause and look at the early Neo-Assyrian army itself, the arm of the empire that was doing all the conquering. It is an infantry focused force, but we also have some to say about the world's ...

5 Juni 202440min

Calah, Nimrud, Kalhu - the new city of Assurnasirpal which will serve as imperial capital for the next century and a half has many names, but is built on a foundation of blood and plunder. We look at ...

22 Maj 202445min

Is Assurnasirpal II, king of Assyria, a relentless narcicisstic psychopath? Or is he a profoundly competant, ruthless tyrant? Can he be both, and does it really matter? Today we begin the first set of...

8 Maj 202438min