Episodes

  • Rome: Strategy of Empire | James Lacey

    Rome: Strategy of Empire | James Lacey
    Dec 12 2025
    Join World History Encyclopedia as they sit down with author and historian James Lacey to chat all about Rome: Strategy of Empire, the first work to lay out Roman strategic thinking from its start under Augustus until its final demise in 476 CE From Octavian's victory at Actium (31 bc) to its traditional endpoint in the West (476), the Roman Empire lasted a solid 500 years—an impressive number by any standard, and fully one-fifth of all recorded history. In fact, the decline and final collapse of the Roman Empire took longer than most other empires even existed. Any historian trying to unearth the grand strategy of the Roman Empire must, therefore, always remain cognizant of the time scale, in which she is dealing. Although the pace of change in the Roman era never approached that of the modern era, it was not an empire in stasis. While the visible trappings may have changed little, the challenges Rome faced at its end were vastly different than those faced by Augustus and the Julio-Claudians. Over the centuries, the Empire's underlying economy, political arrangements, military affairs, and, most importantly, the myriad of external threats it faced were in constant flux, making adaptability to changing circumstances as important to Roman strategists as it is to strategists of the modern era. By employing an expansive definition of strategy and by focusing much of the narrative on crucial historical moments and the personalities involved, James Lacey provides a comprehensive, persuasive, and engaging account of the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. It assimilates the most recent work of classical historians and archaeologists to correct the flaws and omissions of previous accounts, thus presenting the most complete and nuanced narrative of Roman strategic thinking and execution ever published. — BUY ROME: STRATEGY OF EMPIRE — Buy the book from Oxford University Press https://global.oup.com/academic/product/rome-9780190937706?utm_campaign=1433189261099882389&utm_source=third%20party&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=text+advert&utm_term=WHE — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON— https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia — BUY OUR MERCH — https://www.worldhistory.store​/​ — CHAPTERS — 0:00​ Introduction 0:51 James Jacey's background 6:00 Focus of the book - the strategy of Ancient Rome 17:34 Modern-day strategy and its links with Ancient Roman strategy 35:19 Outro — WANT TO KNOW MORE? — Ancient Rome https://www.worldhistory.org/Rome/ Roman Empire https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Empire/ The Extent of the Roman Empire https://www.worldhistory.org/article/851/the-extent-of-the-roman-empire/ Enemies of Rome in the 3rd Century CE https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1145/enemies-of-rome-in-the-3rd-century-ce/ Roman Warfare https://member.worldhistory.org/Roman_Warfare/ Roman Army https://member.worldhistory.org/Roman_Army/ — WATCH — The Roman Invasion of Britain with Richard Hingley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNfdfuH7z1c Rome: An Empire's Story with Greg Woolf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTQSrskjPRs The Roman Epic Poem The Aeneid: Introduction and Summary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2dcqDjxl_c History of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty of the Roman Empire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HE7l5GL8KcI — ATTRIBUTIONS — The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on: https://www.ancientlyre.com https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A World History Encyclopedia www.worldhistory.org
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    36 mins
  • Everyday Discoveries Reshaping History | Ian Richardson & Michael Lewis

    Everyday Discoveries Reshaping History | Ian Richardson & Michael Lewis
    Nov 29 2025

    Ian Richardson, Senior Treasure Registrar at the British Museum, explores how everyday discoveries made by the public have reshaped our understanding of Britain’s past. He explains the Portable Antiquity Scheme and the Treasure Act, showing how ordinary finds from metal detecting, gardening, or chance become part of the national record. In this talk, he shares stories of remarkable discoveries including a Bronze Age gold vessel mistaken for a light fitting, a rare Roman cavalry helmet, thousands of Anglo-Norman silver pennies buried after the Battle of Hastings, and even a jar of American gold coins hidden in a London garden. Richardson also explains how finds are reported, how museums decide what to keep, and why recording even small objects can reveal lost settlements and forgotten landscapes, while reflecting on the luck, strategy, and thrill behind uncovering history beneath our feet.

    Ian Richardson and Michael Lewis wrote Beneath Our Feet: Everyday Discoveries Reshaping History, going into greater depth on many of these stories and exploring the important role of the public in uncovering the past.


    📚 Buy the book here:

    Beneath Our Feet: Everyday Discoveries Reshaping History

    by Ian Richardson & Michael Lewis

    https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500027528


    — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON—

    https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia

    — BUY OUR MERCH —

    https://www.worldhistory.store​/​


    — ATTRIBUTIONS —

    The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on:

    https://www.ancientlyre.com

    https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A


    World History Encyclopedia

    www.worldhistory.org
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    59 mins
  • The Surprising Life of Christopher Marlowe | Harrison Mark

    The Surprising Life of Christopher Marlowe | Harrison Mark
    Nov 22 2025

    Step into the fascinating world of Elizabethan England with historian and educator Harrison Mark, as he explores the life, works, and mysterious death of Christopher Marlowe, one of the most influential—and controversial—figures in English literary history.

    In this conversation, Harrison shares his passion for history and literature, tracing Marlowe’s journey from his humble beginnings to his groundbreaking plays and poetry that transformed English drama. Discover how Marlowe’s bold themes of politics, religion, violence, and forbidden love pushed the boundaries of Renaissance theater and inspired none other than William Shakespeare.

    The lecture also dives deep into the mysteries surrounding Marlowe’s life: his rumored role as a spy for Queen Elizabeth I, his dangerous ideas on religion, his sexuality, and the suspicious circumstances of his early death—murder or secret escape? Harrison unpacks the myths and historical evidence with clarity and insight.

    — BUY OUR MERCH —

    https://www.worldhistory.store​/​


    — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON—

    https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia


    — ATTRIBUTIONS —

    The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on:

    https://www.ancientlyre.com

    https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A


    World History Encyclopedia

    www.worldhistory.org
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    44 mins
  • The New Roman Empire - Interview with Anthony Kaldellis

    The New Roman Empire - Interview with Anthony Kaldellis
    Nov 15 2025
    A major new history of the Eastern Roman Empire (also known as Byzantium), from Constantine to 1453 by author and scholar Anthony Kaldellis. In recent decades, the study of the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as Byzantium, has been revolutionized by new approaches and more sophisticated models for how its society and state operated. No longer looked upon as a pale facsimile of classical Rome, Byzantium is now considered a vigorous state of its own, inheritor of many of Rome's features, and a vital node in the first truly globalized world. The New Roman Empire is the first full, single-author history of the eastern Roman empire to appear in over a generation. Covering political and military history as well as all the major changes in religion, society, demography, and economy, Anthony Kaldellis's volume is divided into ten chronological sections which begin with the foundation of Constantinople in 324 AD and end with the fall of the empire to the Ottoman Turks in the fifteenth century. The book incorporates new findings, explains recent interpretive models, and presents well-known historical characters and events in a new light. — BUY THE BOOK HERE — The New Roman Empire - A History of Byzantium by Anthony Kaldellis https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-new-roman-empire-9780197549322?utm_campaign=8692uxaqm&utm_source=third%20party&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=web+banner+link&utm_term=world+history+encyclopedia — EXTRAS — Other publications by Anthony Kaldellis: https://kaldellispublications.weebly.com/ Byzantium & Friends - A podcast on Byzantium by Anthony Kaldellis: https://byzantiumandfriends.podbean.com/ — CHAPTERS — 00:00 Intro 00:40 What is your book about? 03:15 Did you get to focus on the everyday people? 05:15 How could the Empire sustain for so long? 07:38 Why did you write this book now? 08:39 Did you find anything surprising during your research? 10:50 How did you approach your book? 15:20 On the bad reputation of the Byzantine Empire 22:50 Outro — WANT TO KNOW MORE? — Byzantium https://www.worldhistory.org/Byzantium/ Byzantine Empire https://www.worldhistory.org/Byzantine_Empire/ Philo of Byzantium's On the Seven Wonders https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2257/philo-of-byzantiums-on-the-seven-wonders/ The Isaurians and the End of Germanic Influence in Byzantium https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1346/the-isaurians-and-the-end-of-germanic-influence-in/ Byzantine-Armenian Relations https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1207/byzantine-armenian-relations/ — BUY OUR MERCH — https://www.worldhistory.store​/​ — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON— https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia — ATTRIBUTIONS — The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on: https://www.ancientlyre.com https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A World History Encyclopedia www.worldhistory.org
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    24 mins
  • A New History of the Ancient Near East with Amanda Podany

    A New History of the Ancient Near East with Amanda Podany
    Nov 8 2025
    Weavers, Scribes, and Kings: A New History of the Ancient Near East by Amanda H. Podany is a unique history of the ancient Near East that compellingly presents the life stories of kings, priestesses, merchants, bricklayers, and others. Rather than chronicling three thousand years of rulers and states, Weavers, Scribes, and Kings instead creates a tapestry of life stories through which readers will come to know specific individuals from many walks of life, and to understand their places within the broad history of events and institutions in the ancient Near East. In this sweeping history of the ancient Near East, Amanda Podany takes readers on a gripping journey from the creation of the world's first cities to the conquests of Alexander the Great. The book is built around the life stories of many ancient men and women, from kings, priestesses, and merchants to brickmakers, musicians, and weavers. Their habits of daily life, beliefs, triumphs, and crises, and the changes that people faced over time are explored through their own written words and the buildings, cities, and empires in which they lived. — BUY THE BOOK — Oxford University Press https://global.oup.com/academic/product/weavers-scribes-and-kings-9780190059040?utm_campaign=1430288586311315018&utm_source=third%20party&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=web+banner+link&utm_term=WHE-Excerpt — MORE FROM AMANDA — Amanda's Website https://amandapodany.academia.edu/ Amanda's Twitter https://twitter.com/ahpod Brotherhood of Kings: How International Relations Shaped the Ancient Near East https://global.oup.com/academic/product/brotherhood-of-kings-9780195313987?cc=us&lang=en& The Ancient Near East: A Very Short Introduction https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-ancient-near-east-a-very-short-introduction-9780195377996?cc=us&lang=en& Lecture series: Ancient Mesopotamia: Life in the Cradle of Civilization Wondrium: https://www.wondrium.com/ancient-mesopotamia-life-in-the-cradle-of-civilization — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON— https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia — CHAPTERS — 0:00​ Introduction 0:57 What is the book all about? 4:45 What kinds of sources did you use? 8:32 Why did you decide to write this book? 12:46 Did anything surprise you whilst researching or writing the book? 16:24 Was there much evidence for women? 18:28 What is one thing people should know about the topic? — WANT TO KNOW MORE? — The Ancient Near East https://www.worldhistory.org/Near_East/ Mesopotamia https://www.worldhistory.org/Mesopotamia/ Daily Life in Ancient Mesopotamia https://www.worldhistory.org/article/680/daily-life-in-ancient-mesopotamia/ Women in Ancient Mesopotamia https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2081/women-in-ancient-mesopotamia/ — BUY OUR MERCH — https://www.worldhistory.store​/​ — ATTRIBUTIONS — The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on: https://www.ancientlyre.com https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A World History Encyclopedia www.worldhistory.org
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    20 mins
  • Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace with Alexander Mikaberidze

    Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace with Alexander Mikaberidze
    Oct 4 2025
    Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace by Alexander Mikaberidze is about a character, a historical figure, but also the main protagonist of the book that many people claim to have read, but very few actually manage to get through, War and Peace. Those who are familiar with the novel know that the Russian field marshal who leads the Russian armies both in 1805 and then in the decisive showdown with Napoleon in 1812 was Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov, this very interesting character that Tolstoy uses to create his own vision of what a historical figure should be like. This book is the first modern biography of this figure. For some reason, not much attention has been paid to him. The book looks at his entire life. He was born in 1747 and passed away in 1813 so he didn't live long enough in that sense. But it was a career that was fascinating to really explore, because he joined the military when he was just twelve years old, spent the rest of his life in the military service, fought in numerous campaigns, and really went through the entirety of the military system. I jokingly refer to him as a jack of all trades because in the military service he was essentially employed in every branch, in every capacity you can imagine — BUY THE BOOK HERE — Oxford University Press https://global.oup.com/academic/product/kutuzov-9780197546734?utm_campaign=1430284817574935310&utm_source=third%20party&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=banner+link&utm_term=WHE — MORE FROM ALEX — Twitter: https://twitter.com/AMikaberidze The Napoleonic Quarterly Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-napoleonic-quarterly/id1547058446 - This is an innovative history podcast that Alex and a group of his colleagues are producing covering the entire Napoleonic era. — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON— https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia — BUY OUR MERCH — https://www.worldhistory.store​/​ — CHAPTERS — 0:00​ Introduction 0:41 What is the book all about? 3:35 Why hasn't anyone written a biography of Kutuzon in over fifty years? 6:46 Are there many primary sources available from the Russian point of view? 8:36 How did you come to write this book on Kutuzov? 14:24 Did anything really surprise or fascinate you whilst researching for this book? 17:40 What is one thing you want people to know about your book and Kutuzov? 19:31 Outro — WANT TO KNOW MORE? — Napoleon Bonaparte During the Early French Revolution (1789-1794) https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2036/napoleon-bonaparte-during-the-early-french-revolut/ — WATCH — Rome: Strategy of Empire with James Lacey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo6yLYC4bKo Norse America: The Story of a Founding Myth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldOtYQOqCw8 The First Black Archaeologist: A Life of John Wesley Gilbert with John Lee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZSZHzpaXog Rome: An Empire's Story with Greg Woolf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTQSrskjPRs — ATTRIBUTIONS — The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on: https://www.ancientlyre.com https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A — THUMBNAIL IMAGE — Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace by Alexander Mikaberidze Oxford University Press World History Encyclopedia www.worldhistory.org #kutuzov #napoleonicwars #alexandermikaberidze
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    20 mins
  • Norse America: The Story of a Founding Myth, with Gordon Campbell

    Norse America: The Story of a Founding Myth, with Gordon Campbell
    Dec 16 2024

    In our interview with Gordon Campbell, we chat all about his new book Norse America: The Story of a Founding Myth. The book tells two stories. One story is that of the Norse proceeding in the 10th and 11th century from mainland Scandinavia to the Faroes and Iceland and Greenland, and from Greenland they sail, hunting in many cases to what is now the Eastern Arctic in Canada. And they famously, as we have known since the 1060s, had a sort of camp in Northern Newfoundland at a site called L'Anse aux Meadows.

    The other story is the appropriation of the first story by Canadians and Americans who want to have been discovered by people with white North European origins rather than by Columbus, who was Italian, sailed for Spain, and did all kinds of other suspicious things. So, there is a racial narrative, which is potentially pernicious in the huge attraction of having the Norse discover America. I became interested in the attraction as much as I did in the actual voyages themselves.

    — BUY NORSE AMERICA: THE STORY OF A FOUNDING MYTH —

    https://www.worldhistory.org/books/B08YZ5M8YY/

    — GORDON'S WEBSITE —

    https://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/english/people/gordoncampbell

    — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON —

    https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia

    — BUY OUR MERCH —

    https://www.worldhistory.store​/​

    — WANT TO KNOW MORE? —

    The Norse in America: Fact and Fiction https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1880/the-norse-in-america-fact-and-fiction/

    Leif Erikson https://www.worldhistory.org/Leif_Erikson/

    Vinland https://www.worldhistory.org/Vinland/

    — ATTRIBUTIONS —

    The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on:

    https://www.ancientlyre.com

    https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A
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    39 mins
  • Egyptian Mythology: A Travelers Guide From Aswan to Alexandria, with Garry Shaw

    Egyptian Mythology: A Travelers Guide From Aswan to Alexandria, with Garry Shaw
    Dec 9 2024

    Join World History Encyclopedia as we talk to Garry Shaw, an Egyptologist and author of a brand new book Egyptian Mythology: A Travelers Guide From Aswan to Alexandria. Garry's book on Egyptian mythology starts with a journey beginning in the south of Egypt, which is the traditional border in the region of Aswan, and then you travel northward to the Mediterranean Sea, stopping at various locations along the way, which have religious importance or a lot of mythology behind them.

    It's a fun, different approach to Egyptian mythology than what you normally find in other Egyptian mythology books. Looking at the book as a whole, and also deep-diving into the sites of Saqqara, Pi-Ramesses and Tell-el-Amarna, just us as we take a journey down the Nile river with Garry Shaw!

    — BUY THE BOOK —

    https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500252289/

    Egyptian Mythology: A Traveler's Guide from Aswan to Alexandria Book Review https://www.worldhistory.org/review/255/egyptian-mythology-a-travelers-guide-from-aswan-to/

    — GARRY'S LINKS —

    Website https://garryshawegypt.blogspot.com/p/books.html

    Twitter https://twitter.com/GarryShawEgypt

    Instagram https://www.instagram.com/garryjshaw/

    — SUPPORT US VIA OUR PATREON —

    https://www.patreon.com/join/whencyclopedia

    — BUY OUR MERCH —

    https://www.worldhistory.store​/​

    — WANT TO KNOW MORE? —

    Ancient Egyptian Mythology https://www.worldhistory.org/Egyptian_Mythology/

    Ancient Egyptian Religion https://www.worldhistory.org/Egyptian_Religion/

    Egyptian Gods - The Complete List https://www.worldhistory.org/article/885/egyptian-gods---the-complete-list/

    — ATTRIBUTIONS —

    The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on:

    https://www.ancientlyre.com

    https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A
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    37 mins