Episode 11 - The Eastern Provinces

I answer your questions about where the Romans got their gold from, how Romania ended up with a Romance language, Byzantine games of polo and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. 

I answer your questions about the Secret History, eunuchs, the Doukas name, the Byzantine crown, the Crown of Thorns and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. 

Synopsis:  A century after Queen Zenobia, another Syrian Arab warrior queen rises to challenge the power or Rome – and succeeds.  The story of Queen Mavia of the Tanukh. “Mavia, queen of the Saracens, had begun to convulse the villages and towns on the border of Palestine and ...  Show more

1260 - The Mongol expansion had reached the Middle East, and their power enabled them to crush the established states up to the Holy Land. The Holy Land was being claimed by an Egyptian Dynasty with Turkic origins, and as such, would also have mastery of horsemanship and arche ...

Synopsis: The Great Kings of Carchemish continue ruling over a Hittite rump state in northern Syria as they support the region’s recovery.  After an attack by the Assyrian king Ashur-bel-kala, the Carchemish dynasty is supplanted by the house of Suhi. “In that year, in the mon ...  Show more

In 1516, the Ottomans defeated the mighty Mamluk Empire in the Middle East, taking control of Gaza. How did Ottoman forces roll out scorched-earth tactics on Gaza City to punish those who had rebelled against them? How did the citrus and cotton industries develop in Ottoman Pales ...  Show more