166 – Wulfred: The Rogue Archbishop

Season Four is called Anglo Saxon Ascendancy because we have been seeing mighty kings like Offa, AEthelbald, and Coenwulf acquire vast amounts of power in Britain that enable them to nearly become the first kings of England. Their hegemonies were so big and impressive that we hav ...  Show more

When we left off, King Beornwulf was reigning over Mercia. Beornwulf was the beginning of the creatively named B-Dynasty, due to the fact that Anglo Saxons seemed to denote their dynasties by selecting the same first letters for their kids. So Beornwulf had two kids named Berhfri ...  Show more

“Here was a program to wet the ambitions of warlords as well as scholars, and to send men into battle beneath the fluttering of banners, the hiss of arrows, and the shadow of carrion crows…” The year is 777 and Charles the Great - Charlemagne - has ruled as joint king of the Fra ...  Show more

The “Father of Europe”, Charlemagne’s rule as King of the Franks changed the face of Europe, unifying regions that had been at war and spreading Christianity across the continent. As Holy Roman Emperor, crowned by the Pope himself, he founded the Carolingian dynasty. His reign sp ...  Show more

In modern France, the Frankish king, Clovis, is often celebrated as the first French king. But Clovis’ Merovingian dynasty was in fact destined to fade and die. In its place, there arose a new dynasty that would become more famous: the Carolingian. But before we say goodbye to th ...  Show more

The Frankish king, Charlemagne the Great, is one of the titanic figures of European history, simultaneously renowned and shadowy. His rise to supreme power is a staggering story of warring religious empires, betrayal, battle, blindings and brutal conquest. How, then, did this one ...  Show more