Share

cover art for The Rise of British Castles

Gone Medieval

The Rise of British Castles

Ep. 356

Castles. For centuries they have held fast across the landscape of the British Isles. Like beacons on a hill they project power in stone and wood. But where did these quintessentially medieval strongholds come from? And how were they put to use?


All this month on Gone Medieval, Dr Eleanor Janega and Matt Lewis are embarking on a new six-part series exploring the story of Britain's great castles: how they were built, how they survived assault and what they represented to the peoples that lived nearby.


In this episode Eleanor is joined by medieval historian and all-round castles expert Marc Morris to discover the origins of castles in the British Isles, unpack the anatomy of a typical medieval castle and encounter perhaps the greatest castle England has ever seen: Dover.


Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega and produced by Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.


Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscription


You can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK

More episodes

View all episodes

  • 357. Richard II vs. Henry IV

    59:07||Ep. 357
    For the Plantagenets, family might be a curse as often as a boon. They could provide invaluable support, or dangerous rivalry. At the end of the 14th century, the relationship between two first cousins rocked England, ruptured the line of succession and had a long legacy.Helen Castor joins Matt Lewis to discuss the fascinating true story of cousins who became deadly rivals.Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis. The editor is Ella Blaxill and the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK
  • 355. History in Flames: Destroyed Manuscripts

    45:49||Ep. 355
    Bonfires of paperwork have accompanied human upheaval for centuries, eradicating, making space for rewriting. Imagine standing in the centre of Paris as revolutionaries sweep away the old ways along with the ashes of centuries of records and memories.Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Robert Bartlett to consider how much of what we might have known about the past has been consumed by the fires of revolution and war, and how close we were to losing every word of Beowulf.Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis and edited by Ella Blaxill. The producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK
  • 354. Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor

    40:28||Ep. 354
    If you’ve ever been to Prague, you’ll have noticed that there are many places and institutions that bear the name Charles - all of them because Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV was responsible for their creation. Furthermore, almost every great medieval building you’ve seen in Prague was commissioned by him. But Charles IV was also an incredibly skilled politician, and a devoted religious man who sought relentlessly to restore the glory of the Empire, and the papacy to Rome from Avignon.In this explainer episode, Dr. Eleanor Janega tells the story of this man whose rise to power was a bit of a surprise, given his humble origins.Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’You can take part in our listener survey here >
  • 353. How To Live Like a Viking

    44:41||Ep. 353
    The stories often told and retold of the early medieval period are those of great kings, battles and daring deeds. But ordinary people can often be harder to get at.Matt Lewis is joined by Dr. Eleanor Barraclough to discuss how the once-lost little bits and pieces that survive - love letters carved into wood, combs and pots mainly from medieval rubbish dumps - provide windows into everyday Viking lives as they were lived.Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis and edited by Max Carrey. The producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK
  • 352. Viking Travels

    47:12||Ep. 352
    Vikings have long been depicted as that stereotype of the hairy, nameless warrior, leaping ashore from his longboat, ready to terrorise a hapless local population in a northern European country. But there were also seers, artisans, travellers, and writers, too whose stories can now be pieced together through the traces that they left behind.Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Alex Harvey to bring to light new research and challenge our conventional understanding of the Viking era, which may not be as accurate as we thought or as the sagas would have us believe.Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega and edited by Max Carrey. The producer is Rob Weinberg, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast. Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK
  • 351. Henry V with Dan Jones

    45:39||Ep. 351
    For centuries, one English monarch basked in an almost unblemished, heroic reputation. But more recently questions have been asked about some of his actions. Was Henry V a great warrior king, or a vicious butcher - or both?Matt Lewis is joined by Dan Jones to fill the gap between the Plantagenets and the Wars of the Roses with an examination of the relatively newly divisive figure, Henry V.Clip of Shakespeare's Henry V from the 2013 Globe Theatre production, with Jamie Parker as Henry V.Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis and edited by Rob Weinberg. The producer is Joseph Knight, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ You can take part in our listener survey here >
  • 350. Warrior Viking Women

    40:39||Ep. 350
    One of the enduring mysteries of the Viking Age is the identity of two people buried in a spectacular blood drenched ship in southern Norway in the autumn of 834. Why the mystery? Because these remains were of women accorded the most lavish Viking burial ever discovered.Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Heather Pringle to discuss research that reveals how Viking women were warriors, traders, and leaders, and how their lives have been long overlooked by history.Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega and edited by Ella Blaxill. The producer is Rob Weinberg, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK
  • 349. Rewriting the First Crusade

    44:42||Ep. 349
    The Crusades still capture the imagination today, for all of their professed good intentions they were also bloody ideological wars.But have we misunderstood some of the key sources for the First Crusade? The letters on record are not only from popes and bishops but also written by crusaders who were actually on the campaign.Matt Lewis is joined by Dr. Thomas Smith, a leading historian of the Crusades, to learn more about what we might have previously missed.Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis and edited by Ella Blaxill. The producers are Joseph Knight and Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original TV documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off your first 3 months using code ‘MEDIEVAL’ https://historyhit.com/subscriptionYou can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK