Episodes
Jan. 13, 2022
130 – The father of the father of the nation: the rise of the Medici (1402 – 1428)
We follow the life and times of Giovanni di Bicci De Medici, shrewd banker and able politician as he navigates the complicated waters of early 15th century Florentine politics as the republic prepares to kick of an age of unp...
Jan. 4, 2022
4th anniversary episode
We celebrate our 4th anniversary by announcing a new podcast: The K-Rock Chelsea Hotel; the 1 millionth global listen and a guest episode about 14th century Italy on The History of England podcast.
Dec. 29, 2021
Re-release: 129 – Catherine of Siena – Medieval UN ambassador
In this episode we follow the last part of the life of St Catherine of Siena as her fame and influence grows to International levels and she deals with princes and popes alike, going through the war of the eight saints, the C...
Dec. 25, 2021
Happy Whatever episode
Just to wish you a Merry Christmas, happy Kwanza, Sol Invictus, Saturnalia, to hope you had a good Diwali or Hanukah and in general to wish you a merry whatever this period is for you, even if it's nothing at all. We come bea...
Dec. 21, 2021
129 – Catherine of Siena – Medieval UN ambassador
In this episode we follow the last part of the life of St Catherine of Siena as her fame and influence grows to International levels and she deals with princes and popes alike, going through the war of the eight saints, the C...
Dec. 14, 2021
128 – Caterina of Siena: God's teenage rebel
We look at the early life of Catherine of Siena (Caterina da Siena) as she has her first visions and sets off at a very young age open her life as a mystic, religious and political activist in mid 14th century
Dec. 7, 2021
127 – Milan vs Florence: fight to the death (1395 – 1402)
unstoppable expansion of the newly formed Duchy of Milan. Will they manage? Or will Gian Galeazzo Visconti complete his vision of including Florence in his dominions.
Dec. 1, 2021
126 – Visconti family feud and a new duchy is born (1378 – 1395)
We see how the power-sharing solution for the government of Milan comes crashing down with power once again in the hands of a single man: Gian Galeazzo Visconti, who, after inheriting the holdings of his father and uncle, wil...
Nov. 23, 2021
The Great Q & A session
To celebrate reaching episode 125, we have a special episode with questions from our wonderful listeners We get to talk about Latin, Lombards, Normans, noble houses, strange surnames, the mafia, fascism and much, much more.
Nov. 16, 2021
125 – War and rebellion in Tuscany (1348 to 1382)
After seeing the gruesome spectacle of the plague in Florence through the eyes of Giovani bocaccio we follow the rising tension in the city and all over Tuscany that would eventually erupt in the rebellion known as the "Revol...
Nov. 9, 2021
124 – Troubled Tuscan times and Boccaccio's Decameron
After following Florence and Tuscany through a mini golden age from the 1280's to the 1330's we see things really start to go downhill with social tensions between the Arti Maggiori, the greater guilds, and the arti minori, t...
Oct. 31, 2021
Halloween Special: The Ghost of Bardi Castle
In this special Halloween episode we explore the castle of Bardi in the Apennines of Parma. The ghost is supposedly that of Moroello, the captain of the castle garrison who is said to have died along with his beloved Soleste ...
Oct. 26, 2021
123 – The Tuscan scene and Florence rising (1302 – 1327)
area. We see how things went with the Guelphs and Ghibellines inside and outside the region with all the "international" players while all the while the corporations make their way into the halls of power.
Oct. 20, 2021
Tech update test and free "NewsCappuccino" episode
I'm very sorry but I am updating my tracking system. As an apology: a free episode of one of the features you can find on Patreon, NewsCappuccino, enjoy!
Oct. 19, 2021
122 – Braccio da Montone's last stand (1417 – 1424)
the final chapter of his story: will he rise to even greater glory and perhaps cut out a kingdom in central Italy for himself or will it all come crashing down? Will the newly elected Pope Martin the fifth manage to set up a ...
Oct. 13, 2021
121 Braccio da Montone, Lord of Perugia (1407 – 1417)
Braccio's fame increases as he wins victory after victory, in central Italy, against Naples and in his involvement in the Great Western Schism, all the while with his eye on Perugia.
Oct. 6, 2021
120 – Braccio da Montone, early life of a condottiero (1368 – 1406)
Fortebraccio, known as Braccio da Montone
Sept. 21, 2021
119 – Joanna II of Naples and some schism fixing
We see the rather naughty and turbulent reign of Joanna II of Naples. Did she really deserve the nickname "the insatiable" or even "the mad"? Or was it just bad press?
Aug. 17, 2021
118 Sicily goes Spanish and Naples gets big ideas (1372 – 1414)
We see how Sicily loses its independence to the Spanish and then cross over to the mainland to see how king Ladislaus of Naples gets some big ideas on expanding his kingdom.
Aug. 3, 2021
The bagpipes of resistance – Crossover ep. with "The History of England"
In this very special crossover episode, we got the chance to host an episode on the podcast of one of our all-time heroes, David Crowther of "The History of England". In this episode we talk about operation "tombola", the all...
July 21, 2021
117 – Eleonora of Arborea and the fall of Sardinia (1326 – 1410)
The life and times of the great "Giudchessa" and the fall of Sardinia to the Spanish.
June 17, 2021
NewsCappuccino: Roman helmets and insulting Austria – The Italian national anthem
onour of Italy's splendid performance in the EURO cup, a taste on what you can hear on Patreon about the content of the Italian national anthem: the battle of Legnano, Scipio Africanus, the Sicilian Vespers and making fun go ...
June 15, 2021
F100: 02 Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini, early years
n the second episode of Fascism 100, the series on the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Fascist party, we look at the life of Benito Andrea Amilcare Mussolini from his birth on 29th July 1883 to 1921 when the first...
June 9, 2021
116 – Venice in mortal peril (1356 – 1400)
After an attempt at legalising prostitution, the Dolphin doge cannot quite fight off a Hungarian threat, then things with Genoa get so heated over the possession of Eastern Mediterranean islands that Venice stares destruction...