48 episodes
The Dark Ages Podcast Herbert F. Bushman
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- History
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5.0 • 101 Ratings
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The histories of Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages, from 376 CE.
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Origo Gothica
The Goths, Part One.
The Goths appear on the Roman border and quickly become a force to be reckoned with. This episode deals with the Goths origins, early history, conflicts with Rome in the third century, and some things about their culture. Who was a Goth when he was at home? (Spoiler, he didn't wear black or think much about vampires.)
This episode covers a period from about 100 BCE to 271 CE.
Music "The Bretons" By Kevin MacLeod freepd.com
The mentioned map can be found here.
References are here. -
Athanaric & Fritigern
The Goths, Part 2
c. 264-378 CE
The Goths face challenges at home and abroad. An ambitious Roman Emperor seeks to shore up his reign at their expense. Religious controversy and rivalry threatens internal stability. But the greatest challenge arises in the East, and the Goths must abandon their way of life.
The Lord's Prayer in Gothic
Map of the Adrianople Campaign
Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod freepd.com -
Alaric the Bold
The Goths, Part 3
378 - 408 CE
The Gothic Wars end in stalemate as Goths and Romans try to come to terms with new realities. A new leader appears to push for dignity and power for his people, who will take the fight into the heartland of the Roman world.
Map of Alaric's invasion of Greece
Map of Alaric's First Invasion of Italy
Bust of Eutropius
Music:
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod freepd.com -
The Sack of Rome
The Goths, Part 4
408-410 CE
The death of Stilicho leaves Alaric and the Visigoths high and dry. Negotiations break down, and Alaric takes drastic action. The Sack of Rome of 410 is pointed to as one of the points where the Roman Empire fell and the resonance of the event would be felt down through the centuries.
Music :
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod freepd.com
"Rulers of our Lands" by Raphael Krux freepd.com -
Five Kings and a Reckoning
The Goths, Part 5
410 - 451 CE
The Visigoths move out of Italy, into more years of privation. Along the way there's a royal marriage, long marches, sieges and naval blockades. Ultimately the Goths find what they've been looking for for nearly half a century - a home. But there's another, even greater test on the horizon, and a chance to face an old enemy.
Music:
"The Bretons" By Kevin MacLeod freepd.com
"The Black Knight" By Raphael Krux freepd.com
"Epic Strike" By Andrew Sitkov freepd.com
Music is for this episode is by Andrew Sitkov, Keven MacLeod, and Raphael Krux
Sources can be found here -
The Whirlwind of Nations - The Huns Part 1
c. 370 - 395 CE
Where had the Huns come from? Who were they? How did they fight? What made them so scary?
I'll look for answers in this episode, and may even find some.
Information on cranial modification is here and here
An image of the patera is here
Music "The Bretons" By Kevin MacLeod freepd.com
Customer Reviews
Smart, Fun, and Incredibly Insightful
To All Prospective Viewers.
This is potentially the best history podcast I have ever watched. While most podcasts trudge their way through with loads of sources or rely entirely on one or two, the Dark Ages Podcast finds a way to do it all with so little. Scrounging together modern and olden scholars arguments and insights, sources from the day, and his own insight into a compelling narrative about one of history’s most glossed over periods. The early Dark Ages is incredibly fascinating and the huge tangled web of political, military, and religious issues is told beautifully in a way that really sets up everything in the modern day in how the Roman Empire and migrating peoples became the Europe, Africa, and Middle East of today. I cannot recommend a single podcast more.
Witty, well researched and a balm for the soul
The calm, coherent and conversational transfer of vast swaths of historical knowledge is a delight. Give yourself a break from contemporary history and reap the benefit of an amateur historian’s lifetime of research and reflection.
Dark Ages not so dark anymore
My podcasts run towards history pods—David Crowther’s “History of England,” Dan Carlin’s “Hardcore History,” Patrick Wyman’s “Tides of History.”
This is a great addition to those podasts in my subscriber list. Dry humor, the occasional pun, interesting digressions, all work to flesh out an era of history that’s well worth exploring.
If I could only keep all the names straight….