Venice was the impossible city that rose from mudflats to become a medieval superpower. Venice dominated Mediterranean trade through its vast navy, revolutionary shipyards, and strategic position between East and West. From the glass furnaces of Murano to the spice-laden ships crowding its ports, Dan is joined by historian and author Roger Crowley to explore how Venice became the commercial powerhouse of medieval Europe and why this extraordinary city-state was pushed into decline by the Ottomans, before finally falling to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1797.

Roger's book is called 'City of Fortune'.

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore.

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Dan Snow's History Hit is now available on YouTube! Check it out at: https://www.youtube.com/@DSHHPodcast

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You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

Greed, Lust, Pride, Sloth, Gluttony, Envy, Wrath! You might be surprised to learn the true history of the Seven Deadly Sins doesn't start in the bible. Rather, they were first thought up by a Greek monk in the 4th century who'd fled to the desert after becoming embroiled in a scandal with a married woman…

Dan is joined by historian and author Peter Jones to trace the true history of the Seven Deadly Sins, why they took the Middle Ages by storm, and how they have shaped European society for centuries.

You can learn more in Peter's new book, ' Self Help from the Middle Ages: What the Seven Deadly Sins Can Teach Us About Living'

Produced by Mariana Des Forges, McKenna Fernandez and James Hickmann. Edited by Matthew Wilson

We need your help! Let us know what you want from Dan Snow's History Hit by filling in our anonymous survey here: https://forms.gle/PvgayWLkWGjYT4St6

Dan Snow's History Hit is now available on YouTube! Check it out at: https://www.youtube.com/@DSHHPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

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An underground Nazi weapons factory and stash of 77-year-old Denazification files. What is it really like to discover that your grandfather was a member of the SS?

In 2023, journalist Lorenz Hemicker joined us to tell the tale of his grandfather, who took part in the massacre of 25,000 Jews at Rumbula in Latvia. We heard about how a radicalised First World War veteran took up the cause of National Socialism, became directly involved in the darkest of Nazi atrocities, and tried to justify himself in the years that followed.

But the story goes even deeper than that. Today, Lorenz joins us again to share his incredible discoveries in the years since, and discuss how his family have confronted this legacy of atrocity.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

You can listen to our first episode with Lorenz here - https://shows.acast.com/dansnowshistoryhit/episodes/the-nazi-gravedigger-of-rumbula

We need your help! Let us know what you want from Dan Snow's History Hit by filling in our anonymous survey here: https://forms.gle/PvgayWLkWGjYT4St6

Dan Snow's History Hit is now available on YouTube! Check it out at: https://www.youtube.com/@DSHHPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.