Women of the Crusades

How did Islam first take root on Iranian soil? What did medieval Iran - or Persia - look like before and afterwards? How do those early encounters still echo through Iranian society today? The roots of the present-day tensions in Iran are much deeper than just the last 47 years f ...  Show more

Today we dive into the Second and Third Crusades with major players Eleanor of Aquitaine, Saladin and the bold entrance of Richard the Lionheart. Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Natasha Hodgson to trace the twelfth century struggle for the Holy Land.They explore the wildly successful ...  Show more

In 17th-century England, women weren’t asked what they believed, they were generally told to obey. But amid civil war, revolution, and religious upheaval, a remarkable group of women risked everything to speak out. They preached, prophesied and published their defiance, surviving ...  Show more

When so much of history is written by men, Margaret Paston's letters offer us a rare insight into the life of a woman and the world around her in 15th century England.

How did she cope with waves of plague wiping out her town? What did she do when the War of the Rose ...

When women's stories aren't being flat-out ignored from the history books, they can often be sidelined.

Well not here! Joining Kate today is the comedian and author of

From the establishment of a formidable double monarchy to the complex dynamics of the Spanish Inquisition, Isabel of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon were quite the Renaissance team.Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Giles Tremlett to discuss the complex dynamics of this uni ...  Show more