194 - The Italian Wars 11 - Medici pope to Me...

NewEditTo celebrate the 200th anniversary episode, which coincided with the 8th anniversary, we decided to hear from you, dear constant listener to create a special episode to celebrate this great milestone with many more hopefully to come.As well as greetings, we'll hear about:S ...  Show more

Episode SummaryWith Giovanni dalle Bande Nere gone, we return to Florence to witness the dramatic collapse of the centuries-old Florentine Republic and the emergence of Medici princely rule. Against the backdrop of the Sack of Rome, religious extremism, political infighting, and ...  Show more

The Frankish king, Charlemagne the Great, is one of the titanic figures of European history, simultaneously renowned and shadowy. His rise to supreme power is a staggering story of warring religious empires, betrayal, battle, blindings and brutal conquest. How, then, did this one ...  Show more

The Age of the Condottieri - A Short History of Mediaeval Italy from 1409-1530 by Oscar Browning audiobook. Genre: history Italy from 1409 to 1530 is synonymous with the Renaissance, but this was also the age of the condottieri, Italian captains of mercenary companies and multin ...  Show more

In April 2005, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI following the death of Pope John Paul II.The new leader of the Catholic Church was elected after four ballots of the papal conclave. The late Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor was one of 115 cardinals who took part.H ...  Show more

By 711 Europe and the Frankish warlords were facing a graver threat than ever before. Bands of Northern African, nominally Muslim raiders had begun a steady incursion throughout the West, loosely unified under the banner of the Umayyads. Having already taken and plundered the Chr ...  Show more