117 – Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

When we left off Cenwalh of Wessex had left his wife, irritated Penda (since his wife was Penda’s sister), and gained a fancy new wife but lost his kingdom when Penda arrived to have a little chat with him. So he did what many nobles of the time seemed to do… he fled into exile. ...  Show more

So where were we? Oswiu had arranged for the murder of his cousin, which is awkward in itself… but the slain King Oswine was also related to Eanflaed, Oswiu’s wife. So… even if Oswiu wasn’t fussed about kinslaying, chances are that dinner still had suddenly become a lot more awkw ...  Show more

King Edward physically attacks his son, the heir to the throne, in a shocking display of violence. The reason for this outburst? The young prince’s relationship with his favourite knight, Piers Gaveston. The way Edward sees it, if he doesn’t split these two apart, the entire king ...  Show more

Henry has shattered the delicate balance of power in England and King Stephen’s son, Eustace, is on the warpath. The Plantagenets are desperate to shore up their position and look to God for a miracle.  This is History is a Somethin’ Else & Sony Music Entertainment production. ...  Show more

Divide and rule, a man described as Brian Blessed but ‘with a bigger, bushier, blacker beard’, and a whole lot of regicide. Join Anita and William as they continue to take us through the rip-roaring history of the Koh-i-Noor diamond. LRB Empire offer: lrb.me/empire Twitter: @Emp ...  Show more

Henry is rocked by the death of his mother and mentor, the Empress Matilda. The grief-stricken king is left to solve the problems of succession alone. Meanwhile Henry’s marriage to Eleanor is falling apart. Will she look past his rampant infidelity in order to secure greater powe ...  Show more