117. Nader Shah: The Sword of Persia

Who was Bamba Duleep Singh, the self-styled 'Queen of the Punjab'? How did she survive Partition to become one of the last Sikh residents of Lahore? Why did she turn her back on British high society in favour of radical Indian revolutionaries? Why was her attempt to become the fi ...  Show more

**Unlock the entire First British Indians series ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com** During the rise of Hitler, how did a brown-skinned Indian princess survive living in Germany? Who was Catherine Duleep Singh, the ‘Indian Schindler’ who rescued Jewish familie ...  Show more

The Sasanians are renowned as one of Rome's most feared enemies. Founded in third century Persia by an Iranian noble called Ardashir, their dynasty oversaw the growth of a mighty empire that brought down the Parthians and survived into the early Middle Ages. But how did one fa ...

For a little over 200 years, the First Persian Empire ruled over a vast expanse across three continents, making it arguably the world’s first great superpower. At its peak, it stretched from its base in Persia - roughly analogous to modern-day Iran, all the way to India in the Ea ...  Show more

In January 330 BC, Alexander the Great faced one of his most difficult challenges to date. A small Persian force, entrenched in a formidable defensive position that blockaded Alexander’s route to the Persian heartlands. A narrow pass through the Zagros Mountains that has gone ...

The Achaemenid Empire, or better known as the First Persian Empire, was one of the largest empires in History - led by Cyrus the Great it covered 2.1 million square miles. But where did it come from? And what do we know about their society? It was in their DNA to travel and ex ...