Medieval Chastity Belts: History Unlocked

STOLEN! Jesus' foreskin!Well, maybe not. But 2000 years after his birth, where might Jesus' foreskin be? And why does it matter to people?Kate is joined by Dr James White for this episode to find out how the Holy Prepuce has supposedly survived the last two centuries, and what it ...  Show more

Why were the Nazis so fixated on birth rates? How did they encourage larger families? And what was their surprising angle on extramarital pregnancies?In essence, what was the Lebensborn policy?Taking us through Nazi family policy today is Lisa Pine. Lisa is Fellow of the Institut ...  Show more

Sex. It’s everyone’s favourite subject. But has it been that way since the Middle Ages? The repressive instincts of some medieval churchmen meant that the way that ordinary people experienced and enjoyed sex in medieval Europe was very different to how it is today. But despite ...

Despite being a key part of society and everyday life, medieval sexuality was probably left out of your history lessons at school. But how much do we really know about these very private aspects of life in the Middle Ages? Dr Cat Jarman is joined by historian Dr Eleanor Janega ...

Warning: this episode contains explicit language.Medieval people weren’t prudish—far from it. Dan is joined by medieval historian Dr Eleanor Janega to explore sex, marriage, and desire in the Middle Ages. They delve into the beliefs around sodomy as “non-procreative sex”; pilgrim ...  Show more

Prostitutes were everywhere in the streets and neighbourhoods of medieval cities. In one and the same building, there might be a school upstairs, while downstairs prostitutes plied their nefarious trade. But how did such a situation come to pass? And how could such a world exi ...