The 4 Best Short History Of... Podcast Episodes
1) The Mona Lisa
Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the world. 500 years old and just 77x53cm in size, it is kept behind bulletproof glass in the Louvre museum in Paris, where it draws 10 mil...Show More
2) Chichen Itza
Nestled in the heart of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, the ancient city of Chichén Itza stands as a majestic testament to the architectural ingenuity and cultural richness of the ancient Maya civilizatio...Show More
3) The Gladiators
In the first-ever episode of Short History Of… we take a trip back in time to Ancient Rome, to discover the bizarre and barbaric world of the gladiators. But who were these mysterious warriors? And ho...Show More
4) VE Day
Victory in Europe Day brought the curtain down on a horrific conflict that decimated a continent and upended the world. But the price of victory over fascism was impossibly high. Many millions had bee...Show More
5) George Orwell
Best known for his books Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell earned a reputation as chronicler and prophet of modern society. Plagued by illness, he exposed poverty and injustice, sati...Show More
6) The Domesday Book
Following the Norman Conquest at the Battle of Hastings, Norman culture transformed the country, as William I governed through force and bureaucracy. One of his lasting legacies - the Domesday Book - ...Show More
7) The Mitford Sisters
Rarely out of the papers during their lifetimes, and still figures of fascination in modern media, the six Mitford sisters have become notorious. From a shared, if eccentric childhood, the sisters gre...Show More
8) Florence Nightingale
Revered as a heroine, and mythologised as ‘the Lady with the Lamp’, Florence Nightingale has gone down in history as the founder of modern nursing. She battled ill-health and the prejudices of her age...Show More
9) The Hiroshima and Nagasaki Bombings
In May 1945, the Second World War ended in Europe, but Japan refused to surrender - despite seemingly facing inevitable defeat. So, confronted by the prospect of drawn-out and costly fighting, Washing...Show More
10) Marie Antoinette
The last Queen of France before the French Revolution, Marie Antoinette is best known today for her extravagant lifestyle and controversial legacy. Initially admired for her grace and charm, as revolu...Show More