Travel in the Middle Ages, with John F. Romano
A common myth about the medieval period is that no one traveled anywhere, but stayed in the place they were born until they died. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with John F. Romano to find out what travel was really like in the Middle Ages.
Medieval Beer with Noëlle Phillips
Beer: it’s delicious, it’s nutritious, and it’s inseparable from ideas of the Middle Ages. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Dr. Noëlle Phillips about medieval beer: who was making it, who was drinking it, and how the brewing industry leans on the medieval world for its marketing today.
100 Episodes: A Celebration
In celebration of the 100th episode of The Medieval Podcast, it’s a podcast party with all sorts of special guests from the first…
Miracle Stories
It’s medieval storytime! This week, Danièle reads from Caesarius of Heisterbach’s Dialogue on Miracles, including the story of a sinful student, and the woman who took the baby Jesus hostage, as well as a few other fun tales from this thirteenth-century book for monastic novices.
Forgeries in the Middle Ages with Levi Roach
Over the past few years, the world has regularly been abuzz with claims of forgery and fake news. At some points in the Middle Ages, forgery was disturbingly common, often committed by the people we might least expect. This week, Danièle speaks with Dr. Levi Roach about medieval forgery, and how to spot it.
The Medieval Knight with Christopher Gravett
Knights in the Middle Ages were expert horsemen, pious defenders of the church, property managers, courteous entertainers, reciters of poetry, military leaders, and stone-cold killers. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Christopher Gravett on what was knighthood, how one became a knight, and knights in the modern media.
Medieval Science with Seb Falk
One of the most persistent myths about the Middle Ages is that this was a time when science slept, deliberately suppressed by the medieval church. The reality couldn’t be further from the truth. This week, Danièle speaks with Seb Falk about the amazing story of medieval science.
The Humble Medieval Pig, with Jamie Kreiner
One of the most influential animals of the medieval world, both in the barnyard and on the table, was also one of the most troublesome: the pig. This week, Danièle speaks with Jamie Kreiner about how the humble pig influenced everything from culture to theology.
Medieval clothing and clothiers with John S. Lee
Clothing is a vital part of both our identities and our economies. So, how was cloth made and distributed in the Middle Ages? This week, Danièle speaks with John S. Lee about medieval cloth-making, and the role of the medieval clothier.
The Feast of Fools, with Max Harris
January 1st is the Feast of Fools, notoriously a time of drunkenness and debauchery in the medieval church. But was it really? This…
Gunpowder in Medieval Europe with Dan Spencer
How did the arrival of gunpowder in medieval Europe change warfare? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Dan Spencer about this technology, and the changes it brought not only to the battlefield but in other aspects of medieval society.
The White Ship Disaster, with Charles Spencer
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Charles Spencer about the 900th anniversary of one of those pivotal moments that sent shockwaves through history: the White Ship disaster.
Medieval Masterclass for Creators
Our own Five-Minute Medievalist and host of The Medieval Podcast, Danièle Cybulskie, has just started a new venture to help make it easier for people who are creating fiction to get the information they need.
The Merchant of Prato
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle is joined by Peter Konieczny to discuss The Merchant of Prato and the lives of Francesco and Margherita Datini. Their story from 14th century Italy comes from one of the richest document finds ever made!
The Three Caskets
This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle tells the medieval story of The Three Caskets from the Gesta Romanorum, a tale more familiar to theatre and literature fans all over the world as a central plot device in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.
The Fourth Crusade, as told by Robert de Clari
The Fourth Crusade is best known for being the campaign that attacked the Byzantine Empire in 1204. In this episode of The Medieval Podcast, Danièle is joined by Peter Konieczny to talk about Robert de Clari, who wrote one of the accounts of this unusual crusade. What did this French knight say about how the crusaders went from wanting to attack the Holy Land to conquering Constantinople?
Medieval Eels with John Wyatt Greenlee
Medieval historians can sometimes study quirky things. For John Wyatt Greenlee it is researching eels in the Middle Ages. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Surprised Eel Historian about the impact of this fish on the medieval world – who was eating them, how they were eating them, and why they were sometimes a great way to pay the rent.
Medieval Medicine: Does it work? with Joe Alcock
There’s talk in the news from time to time about the surprising efficacy of medieval medicine. Does it actually work? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with emergency physician and wilderness medicine expert Dr. Joe Alcock about which medieval remedies really could work in a pinch, and why.
Marriage, Adultery and Divorce in the Middle Ages with Bridget Wells-Furby
Marriage was an important part of many medieval women’s lives, but not all marriages followed the neat path that the church had laid out for them. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Dr. Bridget Wells-Furby about fourteenth-century heiress Lucy de Thweng and what her story can tell us about medieval marriage, adultery, and even annulment.
Murders in Medieval London
What happens when someone was murdered in the Middle Ages? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle is joined by Peter Konieczny to take a look at the Coroner’s Rolls from 14th century London. These records offer many insights into violent deaths, detailing the who, what, where, when and sometimes why of murders that took place within the city.
Medieval Princesses, with Kelcey Wilson-Lee
Did medieval princesses live that typical fairy-tale role? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle talks with Kelcey Wilson-Lee, author of Daughters of Chivalry: The Forgotten Children of Edward I, to learn about how these English princesses actually lived during the Middle Ages.
Medieval Stain Removal
What did medieval people do when they spilled wine on their best clothes?
Medieval Bodies with Jack Hartnell
From manuscripts to wash basins, medieval objects can tell us a lot about how people conceived of the world. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with Dr. Jack Hartnell about what objects can tell us about the Middle Ages, medicine, and especially medieval bodies.
Preventing the Misuse of the Medieval Past with Amy Kaufman and Paul Sturtevant
There are those who abuse the medieval past in order to promote ideas of racism, white supremacism, and other toxic ideologies. To counter these views, Amy S. Kaufman and Paul B. Sturtevant have written The Devil’s Historians: How Modern Extremists Abuse the Medieval Past. They join Danièle on The Medieval Podcast to talk about their work and how the Middle Ages was more diverse, compelling, and complex than is often portrayed in mass media.