Sarah Goldsmith talks about the Grand Tour as a rite of passage for young men. These young men went abroad to learn things about art and architecture. She also discusses the way the Grand Tour intersected with military rites of passage and how some grand tourists ended up at the Battle of Waterloo. To follow Sarah Goldsmith: @S_Goldsmith_ This was produced in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Follow their work here: https://twitter.com/ahrcpress Producer: Peter...

Joanne Paul talks to Helen about Anne Dowriche. Dowriche was a 16th century writer, usually classified as a pious writer. Joanne casts her instead as a deeply political writer, and explains how her commentaries on the wars of religion were a rare example of political writing from a Tudor woman. To find out more about Joanne's work, follow her on Twitter: @Joanne_Paul_ Or check out her website: https://www.joannepaul.com/about This was produced in partnership with the Arts and Humanities...

Rachel Hewitt talks to Helen about women in sports and mountaineering, and how that plays into perceptions of women generally, as well as informing current gendered perceptions of who gets to use public spaces. Women are subject to a myriad network of social pressures, many of which are informed by previous perceptions of history. Sports play a large role in constructing such social pressures. As Pierre de Coubertin, the creator of the Olympic Games in their present form, once said: "Sports...

Emily Cock talks to Helen about Thomas Fairfax, the Civil War general who used a wheelchair, as well as the history of disability more generally. What did it mean to have facial scars in the 17th century, and how did the Earl of Arlington use a scar on his nose to curry favour with Charles II? Thomas Fairfax's wheelchair: https://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/military-history/pre-20th-century-conflict/art549698-thomas-fairfax-english-civil-war-wheelchair One of Arise Evans'...

Louisa Egbunike discusses the history of the Nigeria-Biafra war, and particularly how Nigerians responded to the war through the visual and written arts. To follow more of Louisa's work, follow her on twitter at @LouisaEgbunike. Unfortunately, there were a few connection issues in the recording of this podcast, and the sound may be a little patchy at times. Many apologies if you have any issues! Below is a list of the visual artists and poets that Louisa discusses to help you in your own...

Sophie Oliver talks to Helen about Jean Rhys, the author of Wide Sargasso Sea, intended as a prequel to Jane Eyre. Sophie talks about how she practices history, and the role of objects in literary history. To follow Sophie's work: @sophieolive @LivUniEnglish @LivUni This was produced in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Follow their work here: https://twitter.com/ahrcpress Producer: Peter Curry @petedoeshistory   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out...

Jon Healey discusses the 17th century in all its twists and folds and manifest complexity. He talks about the Royalists, the Parliamentarians, the Levellers, the Diggers, and the Quakers and what each group stood for and fought for, as well as the Glorious Revolution and tales of drunken cavaliers delivering sermons and placing their genitalia into wine cups. To follow Jon's work: @SocialHistoryOx @KelloggOx This was produced in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council....

Nandini Das talks to Helen about the early age of travel in the Elizabethan era. This era saw the beginnings of travel, with the likes of Thomas Coryate creating 'travel wagers' - where he dared others to bet against him circumnavigating Europe. Nandini also reflects on immigration in the Elizabethan era, and she chronicles some of the similarities and differences around discussions of immigration in the Elizabethan era and in the modern era. The culmination of some of these troubles was...

David Petts talks about Lindisfarne, the Holy Island. He talks about how St Cuthbert ended up as patron saint of the island, and how the practice of early Christians there. Since Lindisfarne is a tidal island, the coming and going of the tides was often compared with the parting of the Red Sea, and the sea itself was seen as a channel to God. To follow David's work, go here: @DavidPetts1 For the DigVentures site, go here: https://digventures.com/lindisfarne/about/ This was produced in...

Emma Butcher talks to Helen about her work on children in warfare. They talk about why children enlisted, and what they did on the battlefield. They discuss the likes of Joseph Bara and Marjorie Fleming, as well as the many magical worlds created by the Bronte sisters. To find more of Emma's work, follow @EmmaButcher_ or see her website: https://www.emmabutcher.net/about This was produced in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Follow their work here:...

Were the Dark Ages really that dark? Seb Falk argues that science and religion weren't at odds with each other in the medieval era, but two sides of the same coin. His main story focuses on the life of John Westwyk, a medieval monk, and through John's eyes we understand how the medieval man or woman might have viewed the world. He talks about the medieval equivalent of the smartphone, the legendary story about trying to steal the testicles and anal glands of beavers, and how to attract a...

Victoria Donovan chats to Helen about how present-day Russia and the USSR have grappled with the legacy of Russia's buildings. The atheist USSR frequently deployed images of ruined Orthodox churches in the aftermath of the Second World War - it was great propaganda. But this posed problems - the USSR was an atheist state, and did not want to be seen harking back to fervently to the religiosity of the Kievan Rus. Debates about what should and shouldn't be preserved under Communism helped to...

Sam Goodman talks to Helen about the end of the British empire and how Britains choose to remember and interact with their former colonies, particularly India. Sam also talks about where alcohol fit into the British Empire - from guides that advised the drinking stout to fortify oneself, to the formation of cultures of drinking in India and at home, to the story about the inadvertent creation of the India Pale Ale. Sam Goodman is Lecturer in English and Communication at Bournemouth...

Michael Talbot starts with a broad overview of the Ottoman Empire's interests and what power it held, before moving on to a problem that would haunt the Ottomans consistently - pirates. These weren't necessarily pirates in a Disney sense - war between the British and the French consistently spilled over into the Meditterenean, and often Ottoman goods and shipping came under attack. Michael explores the Ottoman response, and how they sought to protect their shipping from pirates, corsairs...

Christienna Fryer talks to Helen about the emancipation of slaves in Jamaica in 1838. While the colonial government thought that a similar plantation system might exist with the addition of wages, their formerly enslaved subjects disagreed. Christienna talks about how Jamaicans resisted British rule, and particularly about the Morant Bay rebellion in 1865, which caused brutal British repression. The likes of Charles Dickens, Thomas Carlyle and J. S. Mill discussed whether the British response...

Charles Masson set out one day to hunt down the lost cities of Alexander the Great. He was an private in the East India Company's army until he deserted, and was as such trying to both locate and excavate a mysterious lost city, whilst also being on the run. His story is full of hardship, and Edmund Richardson discusses why a man would choose to abandon his station, journey into the middle of a previously unexplored region (at least by Westerners), and start hunting for the lost city of...

Brendan McGeever talks to Helen about the relationship between anti-semitism and the Russian Revolution. The Russian Revolution in 1917 was a complex event, with myriad factions vying for power. In the chaos, a wave of anti-semitic attacks occurred, and many of the those vying for control did little to stop this. The Bolsheviks, lead by Vladimir Lenin, opposed anti-semitism but had to confront it within the movement and the wider working class. This produced a fascinating and at times...

Catherine Fletcher talks about the Italian Renaissance, giving a run-down of her new book, The Beauty and the Terror. She talks about Florence, and the beginnings of the renaissance, discussing Lorenzo de' Medici as well as the Borgias, as well as the influence of Girolamo Savanorola. She also talks about the more brutal aspects of the renaissance, from the potential that the Mona Lisa was funded by money earned from slavery, to the brutal retribution courtesans who transgressed the rules...

Tom Scott-Smith and Helen talk about the history of famine relief and humanitarian aid, and how it has changed over time. Humitarian aid is intensely political, and the form that humanitarian aid takes today is heavily influenced by its past. That form is important, because the type of aid that refugees receive has a big impact on their lives; the quality and quantity of food matters. Tom also talks nutritional science, showing how overproduction of milk, soy and corn in the 1930s, have...

Helen talks to Joanna Cohen about the relationship between patriotism and consumption and how American attitudes towards consumption changed over the 19th century, particularly in response to the American Civil War. The ways people thought about the American flag, for instance, are particularly insightful as tools for understanding their attitudes towards these topics, as are societal attitudes towards women and commerce. More generally, she works on the relationship between capitalism,...

Helen and Marion talk about the man that shaped the English literary canon, Geoffrey Chaucer. They discuss his life and his legacy, and how the son of a vintner came to write such an influential text. This will be the last episode for a while as Helen takes a well-earned break. Producer: Peter Curry   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Helen takes a deep dive into some gory medical history with Dr Richard Sugg, professor of renaissance literature in Durham. They talk about all manner of wacky medical cures, such as blood consumption and powdered skull, and how these were used by royal surgeons and paupers alike to cure themselves of diseases or to manipulate their enemies. Producer: Peter Curry   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Helen talks to Dr Nicola Tallis about Margaret Beauford, who was instrumental in establishing the reign of her son, Henry Tudor, and thus the Tudor dynasty. Margaret had to balance her ambitions of power with her womanly status, which wasn't an asset when it came to the Tudor court, and yet she managed to wield significant autonomy. Nicola also dispels rumours about Margaret's piety that have persisted to this day. Producer: Peter Curry   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out...

Burn the Witch is a new collaborative podcast series between historians and podcasters Helen Carr and Rebecca Rideal, where they discuss new history in the media and in the world generally. They talk TV shows, movies, music, museums, archaeological discoveries, King Alfred, and viking beards, and more importantly, they talk about how history is represented, and how to make that representation better.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.