Not Just the Tudors

How did a relatively humble gentleman become the most powerful man in Stuart England?Few figures embodied the glamour and instability of the Jacobean court more completely than George Villiers, who rose to become one of the most influential men in England. To some he was charismatic, brilliant, and irresistible; to others, he was reckless, arrogant, and dangerously powerful.In the second episode of our series on Royal Favourites, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb explores the extraordinary rise and dramatic fall of George Villiers with his biographer Lucy Hughes-Hallett.MOREPrivate Life of King James VI & IListen on AppleListen on SpotifyWhat if Guy Fawkes had succeeded?Listen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastWant to find out even more about what it takes to become a royal favourite? Sign up to History Hit and climb under the sheets and into the arms of the first Stuart King of England, James I and VI of Scotland. Dr Kate Lister is walking in George’s footsteps and investigating how you catch the king's eye, fight your way to the top...and stay there! Sign up for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

How did a ghost story bring London to a standstill? Was it a haunting, a fraud, or something even more revealing about Georgian society? Why did rational, educated people fall for elaborate hoaxes?Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr.Madeleine Pelling, co-host of History Hit’s After Dark podcast, to uncover the darker side of the Age of Enlightenment. Why was this period remembered for science, reason, and progress, also fascinated by hoaxes, imposters, fake identities, ghost stories, sensational crime and public spectacle?More:Murderous WomenListen on AppleListen on SpotifyTrue Crime on the Elizabethan StageListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Tim Arstall and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe

Passion, scandal, and power collided in the tumultuous relationship between Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley. Rumours of secret trysts between them set the court ablaze, but their love was doomed from the start.In the first of four episodes looking at royal favourites in the Tudor and Stuart courts, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr. Joanne Paul unravel the complex tapestry of Robert Dudley's life, Elizabeth's devotion and the decades of political intrigue and personal heartbreak.MORE:Tudor True Crime: Murder of Amy DudleyListen on AppleListen on SpotifyDeath, Desire, Power & Scandal: The House of DudleyListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe

What if Henry VIII’s “discarded bride” actually showed real promise as queen?Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr James Taffe to discuss new discoveries about Anne of Cleves’ surviving account book, a rare 200-page record of every pound, shilling and penny that reveals Anne’s queenship through spending, patronage and household life.They discuss the “shadow” household retained after Jane Seymour, what the accounts do (and don’t) show about roles and wages, and the striking discovery that many servants were paid by the king—raising questions of loyalty once Henry turned against Anne.MORESix Wives: Anne of ClevesListen on AppleListen on SpotifyHenry VIII on Screen: The Historians' VerdictListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

How did a condemned Spanish Armada captain survive shipwreck, betrayal, and war to leave behind one of the most extraordinary first-person accounts of the 16th century?Francisco de Cuéllar was a career officer shaped by the harsh realities of early modern warfare, surviving looting, imprisonment, betrayal, and a brutal overland escape through a hostile landscape. Cuéllar's journey became one of the most gripping survival stories to emerge from the Spanish Armada shipwrecks.Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Cuéllar's biographer Francis Kelly to explore a story of survival, imperial warfare, and one man’s determination not to be erased by history.MOREWhen the Spanish Armada Reached IrelandListen on AppleListen on SpotifyThe Spanish ArmadaListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

What was Anne Boleyn like before she became the most controversial queen in English history? Can the rooms and gardens at her childhood home reveal more about the world that shaped her?Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Owen Emmerson to find out more about the magical place where Anne Boleyn grew up, how Hever shaped her early life, education, language skills, and future role at the courts of Europe and England.MORECromwell, Boleyn & Aragon: A New DiscoveryListen on AppleListen on SpotifyBecoming Anne BoleynListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit to see Prof. Suzannah Lipscomb explore Hever Castle in 'The Face of Anne Boleyn'. Also access hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

How did a woman rise to power, and keep it, in the fiercely male-dominated Habsburg Empire?From her distrust of the Enlightenment to her religious intolerance, and from family strategy to imperial power, Maria Theresa was a remarkable ruler driven by discipline, faith, dynastic ambition, and political will.Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Professor Barbara Stollberg-Rilinger to discover how Maria Theresa held together a fractured empire, confronted war and court politics, and reshaped Europe.MOREHabsburg Women: Matriarchs of PowerListen on AppleListen on SpotifyWhen Women Ruled the Low CountriesListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

How did England’s earliest travellers to India try to win favour in a Mughal golden age that scarcely noticed them?Professor Suzannah Lipscomb speaks with Dr Lubaaba Al-Azami about Tudor and early Stuart England’s turn to global trade after Elizabeth I’s break with Catholic Europe, and why Mughal India—vast, wealthy, and pragmatically governed—had little need for English wool or broadcloth.They trace the first arrivals: from a Catholic refugee to an Englishman's Mughal courtly success and marriage, as well as the first English 'walking tourist'.MOREEngland’s First Ambassador to India: Thomas RoeListen on AppleListen on SpotifyThe Emperor Who Built the Taj MahalListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

What if becoming queen was the worst thing that could happen to you? What if the crown became your death sentence?Professor Suzannah Lipscomb explores the tragic story of Lady Jane Grey, the brilliant, devout teenager, who was proclaimed queen of England against her will, reigned for less than two weeks, and was executed before her 17th birthday.Drawing on insights from her new two-part History Hit documentary series, Suzannah is joined by Professor Anna Whitelock, Dr Joanne Paul, Verity Babbs, and Dr Nicola Tallis to uncover the story of a young girl caught in the storm of Tudor power.MORE:"Bloody Mary": Debunking the MythsListen on AppleListen on SpotifyEdward VI: The Last Boy KingListen on AppleListen on SpotifyPresented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. Edited and produced by Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcastSign up to History Hit to see Professor Suzannah Lipscomb in search of the truth about Lady Jane Grey, the young Tudor claimant who was Queen of England for less than 2 weeks. The series explores Jane's short life through extraordinary examples of her own writing, her exceptional education and her self-assured personality.Sign up for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe