Chronicle Medieval History

The printing press was the world’s first piece of mass-production technology. Its invention changed the world as dramatically as splitting the atom or sending men into space. It ignited a cultural revolution which shaped the modern age. It changed the way our brains work, replacing a spoken culture with a written one. It is the machine that made us who we are today.

What was it really like to live just before the end of the first millennium? 1000 AD recreates life circa 999 AD, showing the everyday lives, loves and passions of the Anglo-Saxon people. Britain's system of social welfare, law and order and a yearning for knowledge made them the envy of Europe - and a country under threat from violent and opportunistic raiders, the Vikings.

Deep in the emerald jungle of Honduras lies the lost city of Copán. The enigmatic carvings of its ancient Maya builders guarded its secrets for thousands of years. The city was a major capital city during the 5th to 9th centuries AD, commonly referred to as the "Dark Ages" in the West.

Romantic visions of the explorer Hernando de Soto continue to celebrate the conquistador's arrival in North America 500 years ago as one of the most important events in the history of mankind. But archaeology tells a darker story.

They were bloodthirsty Scandinavian warriors and fine craftsmen. They opened trade routes, founded cities and captured ancient hubs. The Saxons of England feared them but mocked their careful grooming habits. In short, they were pirates with style. But who were the first Vikings and did they actually originate much earlier than we originally thought?

Visions of "Dracula" have haunted mythology and popular culture for centuries. But did he ever actually exist? This documentary hunts down his supposed real-life inspiration Vlad Tepes, or Vlad The Impaler, a celebrated 15th century Romanian prince.

The Vikings owe much of their success to the skilled craftsmen and women who made their sophisticated weapons and lightning fast ships. In this episode, we take a closer look at the weaponry and craftsmanship that allowed them to travel and conquer all around the world. (Episode 2 of 5)

The lives of Anne and Mary Boleyn are misunderstood. Anne, the beheaded wife of Henry VIII, has been both celebrated and damned, seen as both a schemer or a victim. Her sister Mary is less remembered and often dismissed as a fool and a whore. But what was the truth? This remarkable documentary goes on the hunt for answers, seeking out the fascinating truths of one of history's most beguiling sisterhoods.

In this episode, we trace the violent raids and invasions of the Vikings across the globe. From Lindisfarne in England to the coasts of North America, uncovering mysterious burials, we ask historians and archaeologists: what was the reason for these such expansive, brutal raids? The answer is much more complex than you might think. (Episode 3 of 5)

During the Viking Era, clans traversed the continent establishing kingdoms through invasion and warfare. The establishment of these kingdoms is remembered as the last of the great periods of barbarian attacks. It left Europe transformed, ripe for the rise of the new nations that marked the middle ages. Norsemen, another word for Vikings, conquered a quarter of France, half of England and a third of Italy (Episode 4 of 5)

Often remembered as the "Forgotten Tudor King", Edward was just nine his father, King Henry VIII died and the young boy became King. Surrounded by advisors, he became further distanced from his beloved elder sister Mary. But by now they were divided not just by power and status, but also by faith. Mary was a staunch Catholic, Edward a reforming Protestant and the first Protestant King. In the Tudor world, such matters were not an issue of personal choice but matters of life or death, treason or heresy.

The voyages of the Vikings to Britain, Iceland and North America often obscure the fact that the Scandinavian warriors also ventured far to the east across Europe and parts of Asia. From Constantinople to Georgia, these were the last of the great periods of barbarian attacks. It left Europe transformed, ripe for the rise of the new nations that marked the middle ages.

Join filmmaker and author, Elisabeth Thieriot, as she embarks on an epic journey of discovery to dispel the myths about "the December 21st 2012 end of the world" conspiracy theories surrounding Aztec and Mayan Calendars. Can we decode the calendar and what can it tell us about life in the Mayan dark ages?

The Battle of Towton in North Yorkshire, fought during the Wars of the Roses, was reputedly the bloodiest battle ever seen on English soil. In 1996, a mass grave of soldiers was discovered there by a farmer. This was the catalyst for a groundbreaking research project, which included a study of the skeletal remains, the battlefield itself contemporary arms and armour. Join these archaeologists as they discover the true history behind this remarkable event and develop a fascinating insight into the life of a medieval soldier.

The Harem has long been shrouded by mystery and erotic fantasies. In the 16th century the Turkish city of Istanbul was ruled by Suleiman the Magnificent. The center of his power was Topkapi Palace - at the heart of which was the harem. Into it came hundreds of women from all over the empire and beyond. It was a place where sex could equal power.

From late 535 AD to 536, written records from across the world suggest a huge climate catastrophe. Dubbed the year "without a summer", the sun was completely dimmed and shadows were invisible even at noon. The cause of of the "worst year to be alive in history" has been long uncertain.

Follow this team of explorers as they reveal several new facts about the man credited with discovering America. Was he really born in Genoa, Italy? Was he a spy for King John II of Portugal? Who really funded his voyage?

Researchers have now discovered that in 535 and 536 AD, a climatic cataclysm wreaked havoc on the world. Could a violent volcanic eruption of Krakatoa have caused two years of darkness, famine, drought and disease? In this second and final episode, we ponder whether this really was the worst time to be alive and learn how the catastrophe shaped the world as we know it.

The Stuart dynasty lived through arguably the most eventful, bloodthirsty and trying period in British history, and this series - hosted by Professor Kate Williams - reassesses the royal house's history and legacy in a whole new light.

Francis Pryor argues that Britain's early history was a vibrant period, when the island thrived under foreign influences from as far afield as the Middle East without losing any cultural identity. In this full series, he re-imagines the Dark Ages in Britain as a period of expansion, artistic achievement and vibrance.

Professor Kate Williams studies the reign of Charles I, who succeeded James I in 1625. In this fascinating second episode, we learn how religious upheaval and authoritarian rule led to civil war and a beheading.

For the best part of 400 years, explorers have searched the deep canyons & towering ice peaks of these mist-covered cloud forests trying to locate the lost cities of the Inca. They were all after one thing; gold. Any gold would do but there was one thing desired above all others, the Great Golden Disc of the Sun. The most sacred of all Inca relics. The Inca Holy Grail. It is in search of this Holy Grail that David Adams goes on his journey to Puncuyoc, sacred Sister City of Machu Picchu; the city sought but never found by Hiram Bingham.

Flamboyant and party-loving, Charles II, often known as the 'Merry Monarch' had one of the most thrilling lives of any British monarch. Two years after Oliver Cromwell's death in 1658, the exiled king returned to London to huge fanfare. He had several scandalous love affairs and even is credited with the British obsession with drinking tea. Join historian Kate Williams as she takes us through the fascinating reign of the exiled king.

The medieval court was a cruel place. Stephen Smith is joined by David Tennant to investigate the rules of navigating Richard II's court. The medieval king presided over the first truly sophisticated and artistic court in England. Painters, sculptors, poets, tailors, weavers and builders flocked to court to make their fortunes. But these were dangerous times. Being close to Richard brought many a courtier to a sticky end.

On the throne for only three years, King James II succeeded his brother King Charles II in 1685. He was a Catholic monarch of a Protestant nation and attempts had already been made to prevent him from claiming the throne. The last of the Stuart Kings would reign for only three short years and it would be his own daughter, Mary who would be his downfall. She, along with her husband William of Orange, would overthrow the House of Stuart.

The world-renowned Notre-Dame Cathedral still stands at 211 feet into the Parisian skyline. We take a look back at the cathedral's history before the catastrophic fire in 2019. Built in 1163 under Bishop Maurice de Sully, it took almost 100 years to complete. Join us on this incredible journey to the heart of Paris' history and its wider significance for the Middle Ages.

This is the story of the most disturbing witch trial in British history and the key role played in it by one nine-year-old girl. Jennet Device, a beggar-girl from Pendle in Lancashire, was the star witness in the trial in 1612 of her own mother, her brother, her sister and many of her neighbours and, thanks to her chilling testimony, they were all hanged. Join Simon Artimage as he investigates the trial that sent shockwaves around medieval Britain. This is the real story behind the BBC's new hit comedy The Witchfinder.

Tony Robinson investigates what life was like for the common man in the Dark Ages. From charcoal-making to egg-collecting, life as a peasant in the early medieval ages often entailed getting your hands dirty. These are the worst jobs of the Dark Ages.

Waldemar Januszczak makes an epic journey of discovery across the Muslim world, revealing awe-inspiring architecture and art objects that peel back the history of Islam, from the Dark Ages to modern day. Along the way he meets local historians and experts—as well as an array of weavers, calligraphers, potters, and jewelers—who contribute their knowledge of this fascinating field of art history.

Most people in the Middle Ages never saw a doctor, instead they were treated by the local wise-woman, priest, or the barber. Before the invention of anaesthetics, people were treated by herbal remedies, violent teeth removal and a whole host of bizarre concoctions. Join Tony Robinson as he explores the worst jobs of the Middle Ages, from arming squires to leech collectors.

Using only traditional tools and 13th century techniques, join Ruth Goodman, Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold as they learn how to build a medieval castle in France. This complete series follows the trio as they uncover fascinating 13th century practices and discover what life was like for people living and working in the Middle Ages.

The French village of Montaillou was the last stronghold of Catharism in 14th century France. This faith had great appeal to illiterate villagers who had little understanding of the Roman Catholic Church they belonged to. However, in 1308 Pope Gregory IX enlists the Dominicans to root out and destroy the sect, who were persecuted and even burnt at the stake.

Through animation, location footage, archive and interviews, the Beowulf epic is examined in the light of the civilization that created it, the Anglo-Saxons. In this documentary, we investigate the Anglo-Saxons' religious beliefs, their everyday life, and explore the suggestion that the poem may have roots in an even more ancient fertility cult.

Spain, 1468: In a land where Christians, Muslims, and Jews have lived in tolerance for centuries, a young Spanish king and queen, Ferdinand II Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, proclaim themselves the Catholic monarchs and start an inquisition, now known as the Spanish Inquisition. This is the shocking story of the religious upheaval that lasted 56 years.

Historian Dr. Suzannah Lipscomb goes in search of the origins of the deadly craze of witch hunts and trials that infected the British Isles and Europe 400 years ago. In this first episode, she travels to Scotland and Denmark, and uncovers the story of how, by the end of 1590, Scotland was in the grip of its first ever mass witch trial. More than a hundred people were hunted down as witches in league with the Devil and many were burned at the stake.

Venice, once a centre of free thinking, suffers under a climate of terror brought about by the Inquisition. The church’s most powerful weapon will be a new type of inquisition, controlled by the Pope himself. He will use it to curtail the spread of a competing religion, and eliminate those who betray the faith. It will stop the flow of new ideas let loose by the printing press, and repress the birth of modern scientific thought. A new campaign in the battle for the souls of Europe's Christians is about to begin.

Dr Suzannah Lipscomb investigates the shocking story of Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General, in the final part of this two-part series. The ruthless Puritan was the instigator of Britain's most brutal witch hunt in history. Why were these witchfinders allowed to commit these heinous crimes? And what would make you a witch in Medieval Britain?

In this fourth and final episode, we take a look at the demise of the Holy Inquisition that wreaked terror over Europe for centuries. When a Jewish boy is kidnapped by the Vatican, he becomes a symbol for an embattled pope. The boy's father and the Emperor unleash the forces that bring about the end of the Inquisition.

From late 535 AD to 536, written records from across the world suggest a mysterious climate catastrophe. Dubbed the year "without a summer", the sun was completely dimmed and shadows were invisible even at noon. The cause of of the "worst year to be alive in history" has been long uncertain. Was it a comet? An asteroid? A volcano? Archaeologist David Keys reveals the latter is to blame for the Dark Ages of famine and plague that shaped the world order of today.

Guillaume “Le Bâtard”, or William the Conqueror, transformed the Middle Ages and laid the foundations of a new Europe. We trace his journey from 1027 when he succeeded his father as Duke of Normandy at the age of eight, right up until his death in 1087.

The Vikings opened trade routes, founded cities, created new feats of engineering and captured ancient hubs. This complete series chronicles the incredible rise and fall of the Vikings, revealing new discoveries that turn Viking history on its head. We tell their incredible history with the help of the foremost experts on Viking warfare and way of life.

Most people regard the Vikings as violent robbers, but they were much more than their reputation suggests. In the first episode of this series, we take a look at the origins of the Viking people, the major events that shaped the civilisation and what daily life was like as a Viking in this early period.

Dr Janina Ramirez travels across Iceland to find out about one of the most compelling of the great Viking stories - the Laxdaela Saga. These 13th century sagas are not just great works of art, they are also priceless historical documents which bring the mysterious world of the Vikings to life.

As the Vikings begin to attack the coasts of Northern Europe, they begin to encounter a whole different kind of resistance. Charlemagne, the notorious Frankish emperor has no plans to give up his Christian territory to these new raiders. This is the fascinating history of the the Viking raids on Europe and the obstacles they faced: religion, power, and empire.

What's the link between Odin’s mythological eight-legged horse and the modern Icelandic horse? Brought over from Northern Europe by the Vikings over 1,000 years ago, the Icelandic Horse has recently been proved to be intrinsically linked to the Viking legend. Join us as we trace the mythology, history and training of this special Icelandic breed and explore the Norse legend of Sleipnir.

Throughout the 9th century, Viking raids on the region of Francia increased in numbers, sending shockwaves around Northern Europe. Following the death of Charles the Bald in 877 CE, the Vikings set their eyes on Paris, and a two month battle ensued. Join us as we explore the remarkable Siege Of Paris and the Vikings' legacy on Early Medieval Europe.

The Time Team crew trek to one of the outermost Shetland Islands, Fetlar, in an attempt to reveal the truth behind an ancient local myth. A cliff-top mound has long been known as the Giant's Grave. But what does it conceal? And could it be connected with some Viking pottery found in a nearby garden? What the team discovers could be one of their most legendary finds.

The Vikings didn't just spread fear and horror in Europe, but also they helped shape history modern history. The Viking Age is widely believed to have started in 793 AD but how did their violent domination come to an end? In this fourth and final episode, we take a look at the closing act of the Viking story.

The Middle Ages saw two hundred years of crusades where Christianity aimed to recover Jerusalem from Islamic rule. After the violent military campaign in the 13th century, Islam became the religion of people from Spain to Indonesia.

In September 1588, Spanish Armada captain Francisco de Cuéllar was shipwrecked off the Sligo coast. He spent seven months in war-torn Ireland, trying to escape death and marriage before eventually making his way to Madrid.

In 1095 AD, when West-Roman Christianity was spreading out in all directions, the First Crusade set out to recapture the Holy Land from Islamic rule. The 11th century the Seljuk takeover of the region threatened the local Christian populations, pilgrimages from the West, and the Byzantine Empire itself. It was not a battle of cultures, not a struggle against Islam, but a chaotic confrontation of warlords and princes.

TV presenters Fern Britton and Louise Minchin, weight-lifter Zoe Smith, former rock chick Meg Matthews, actors Kirstie Alley, Keith Allen, and Charlie Condou, comedian Chris Ramsey, ex-footballer Jermaine Jenas and long jumper Greg Rutherford sign up to be transported back to six periods of history, starting with the Elizabethan era where they are servants at a great hall preparing a banquet for the lord and his guests. Here they discover just how menial a menial life was.

The biggest catastrophe in Europe, the Thirty Years' War, was caused by Martin Luther's longing for a purer Christianity. Between 1618 and 1648, Europe lost over 8 million innocent people, in an orgy of violence between Protestants and Catholics. Often referred to as "Europe's apocalypse", how did a war between people of the same faith lead to such appalling catastrophe?

The Time Crashers have gone back to 1468, one of the few years England was not troubled by the Wars of the Roses. They are split into two unisex teams of squires, the Reds, and the Blacks, competing with each other to prepare their knights for a jousting tournament. The fastest team to accommodate the winning knight is rewarded with a feast whilst the losers must polish yet more armor.

Marco Polo’s legendary journey from Venice to the far reaches of the Mongol Empire, which he started in 1271, was a monumental leap of human exploration. His travels 700 years ago revealed an exotic world of riches the west had little knowledge of. But how does his journey look today?

A team of historians turns the clock back to the year 1500 to take on the role of the lay-folk who farmed and crafted within monastic lands. The presenters are put through their paces to give viewers a real-life account of what life would have been like in 1500, during the reign of the first Tudor King, Henry VII.

The Dark Ages have been misunderstood. History has identified the period following the fall of the Roman Empire as a descent into barbarism - a terrible time when civilization stopped.

The Tudor industry of wool production was known as `the jewel in the realm' of the English economy, it accounted for around half the country's wealth. The monasteries capitalized on this massively, owning flocks that numbered thousands of sheep and keeping a virtual monopoly on the export of wool to foreign countries.

When Marco Polo's journey has reached the Pamir Mountains on the edge of China, from where Marco Polo follows the Silk Road, down to the forbidding Taklamakan Desert and onto the Mongolian steppe. He makes his way to Xanadu, the heart of Kublai Khan’s power base. Along the way, we meet the modern guides on the ancient horse-drawn postal routes and discover the City of Women in modern-day Tibet.

The team focuses on preparing the staple foods of everyday Tudor life: bread and ale. A hard-working Tudor farmer could consume a two-pound loaf and drink eight pints of weak ale in a day. With the monasteries owning much of the farmland Ruth, Peter and Tom are well aware of the importance of praying for a successful harvest.

Marco Polo sets out to Kublai Khan's new capital city, Beijing. The city is designed to respect the ancient Chinese philosophy of feng shui. We follow along the Grand Canal to Hangzhou and the magical West Lake.

Lead was an important building material and Tom and Peter mine their own using Tudor techniques, while Ruth makes a stained glass window. On the rivers owned by the monastery, tenant farmers could rent fishing rights. Ruth makes baskets to catch eels in and sets about trying to find some.

Since her death 1300 years ago, Wu Zetian has been remembered as a callous tyrant, who brought calamity to China. But now, extraordinary new discoveries are revealing a very different picture of her reign.

The team explores the hospitality and housing of Tudor England. With no provision for the poor from the state, the monasteries played a key role in providing charity and housing for those in need.

The dynasty on which Game of Thrones is based is masterfully brought to life by Dan Jones in this four-part series. Following one of the most shocking periods in British history, a new historical docu-drama brings to life the dynasty that dragged Britain out of the dark ages and into the modern world.

Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold prepare for the dark winter ahead. But, not before they celebrate their bountiful harvest with a feast, put on a play, and reflect on how the landscape of Britain and the lives of its people were forever changed by the Dissolution.

This is the story of the dramatic and violent life of the Middle Ages' most important emperor: Charlemagne. His life as a political strategist, a passionate lover, a man that conquered most of Europe, and a cultural visionary.

Archaeologists and historians unfold a thousand years of the untold history of Mapungubwe, an ancient African city that now lies in ruins on the northern border of South Africa and was the center of all African trade for centuries.

In the year 1096, western Europe embarked on its first crusade to the Holy Land. Marching tens of thousands of people half way across the world to defend the Byzantine Empire from the rising power of the Seljuk Turks, but also to capture Jerusalem from the Fatimid Caliphate. What followed was a period of brutal conquest, with religion used to justify the most cruel violence.

This is the story of the dramatic and violent life of the Middle Ages' most important emperor: Charlemagne. His life as a political strategist, a passionate lover, a man that conquered most of Europe, and a cultural visionary.

This is the story of the dramatic and violent life of the Middle Ages' most important emperor: Charlemagne. But, one man seemed to evade Charlemagne's grasp: Widukind. The Saxon's legendary leader boldly resisted conversion to Christianity in the face of the Holy Roman Emperor. How did Charlemagne finally defeat the "child of the forest"?

This is the story of the Arabian ships and seafarers is often overlooked. But to remind us, there are the dhows of the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean, carrying cargo over waters that witnessed the birth of sea trade. Dhows helped spread Islam throughout the world, turning the Arabs into a major political force. The principal link in the lucrative trade between East and West also made Arab merchants a fortune.

This series reveals true stories of medieval life by examining the skeletal remains that lie buried below the earth's surface. Combining atmospheric, dramatic reconstructions of gripping stories with archaeological science, Medieval Dead takes viewers deeper into the Dark Ages than ever before.

The story of the Chinese Dragon seafaring is one of adventure, courage, and ingenuity that ranges far beyond transporting goods. The moment people were able to move long distances at sea, they became less isolated. Along with their cargoes came other people and new ideas. The resulting interaction would shape the face of the world.

A hoard of Medieval art seized by the Nazis goes missing at the end of the war. A dogged German art detective tracks the missing treasure from the New York art world to the unlikeliest of destinations: a small town on the Texas prairie.

Simon Reeve began his journey in Canterbury and has finally reached Istanbul. Here was once a busy medieval staging post for pilgrims to the Holy Land. Before falling to the Ottoman Empire, it was the centre of Roman Christianity under Emperor Constantine. His mother Helena, arguably the first pilgrim to the Holy Land, brought back relics from Jerusalem to fill the city's churches, which made it a major destination for pilgrimage in its own right for centuries to come. Simon visits the magnificent Hagia Sophia and a traditional Turkish bath, discovering that pilgrims brought public bathing back with them to Europe, showing how pilgrimage spread practical ideas as well as religious ones.

The ancient Mayans were thought to be a mysterious and peaceful people governed by astronomer-priests. But in 1965, Russian linguist Yuri Knorosov cracked the phonetic code of Mayan hieroglyphic writing in the confinements of his bustling Leningrad study. Today, researchers reveal stories of Mayan blood sacrifices as they uncover a world so foreign as to defy our understanding of it.

We are introduced to indigenous creation stories; discoveries by archaeologists, geneticists, linguists, and anthropologists about the arrival of various indigenous people that are believed to arrive via the land bridge from what is now Russia and Alaska. They were also believed to have sailed down the North American coast, settling in many areas and then developing differing languages, cultures, and customs.

This is the real story of normal people who lived in Anglo-Saxon Britain at the turn of the 1st millennium.

Indigenous people created significant changes to their environment through resource harvesting, farming, urban development, irrigation, controlled burning, and deforestation.

With the discovery of the new world in 1492 a war began against the indigenous Americans. Against their culture, their language, and their religion. That war has continued until today, but now it is entering a new phase.

Maize from Mesoamerica, Potatoes from the Andes, biodiversity of the Amazon, Camus from the Plains, seal hunting of the Arctic, whale hunting of the NW Coast, Bison jumps, and Fishing weirs. These are the foods that powered the Indigenous Peoples of The Americas throughout history before the arrival of the Europeans.

Nearly 1,000 years ago, the Vikings left Scandinavia and settled across Europe - spreading fear and horror in their wake. They gave their name to Normandy along the way - before their Norman descendants seized the English throne at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. But what do we really know about them?

Architecture and urban design. Whether living a nomadic existence or in sprawling urban centers, indigenous people throughout the Americas created their homes and community structures to fulfill the needs and values of their society.

This series reveals true stories of medieval life by examining the skeletal remains that lie buried below the earth's surface. Combining atmospheric, dramatic reconstructions of gripping stories with archaeological science, Medieval Dead takes viewers deeper into the Dark Ages than ever before.

Governance models were developed by each Indigenous nation to control their citizens and establish normative behaviors. The Americas are replete with a variety of examples: from patriarchal and matrilineal-based societies to complex political systems governing multi-nation empires.

For nearly 500 years the Norse people dominated the oceans, known by their remarkable ships and known for their death, destruction and burning down of anything in their way. They used sophisticated navigation methods and navigated safely over remarkably long distances.

Early indigenous people in North America were using the number 0 before any other people, had mapped the planets and stars, and had their own calendars and writing methods. We also see how the herbs and plants that they used often are utilized in our modern drugs, as in the Yew tree bears components in Tamoxifen for cancer treatment today and the Willow tree has acetylsalicylic acid for aspirin.

War, plague, the Great Fire, and the beheading of Kings Charles I. This is the tumultuous legacy of The Stuart Kings. Four Kings from the house of Stuart sat on the English throne from 1603 to 1688. It was a time of great religious struggle and political instability. The Gunpowder Plot nearly wiped out King James I. The Thirty Years' War broke out on the continent. A civil war erupted that led to the public beheading of King Charles I and the birth of a commonwealth headed by Oliver Cromwell. London was ravaged by the Plague and The Great Fire of London.

The Incas were legendary for their metalworking abilities. Learn about the magnificent art of various native communities before 1492. We see their hand paintings and paintings of animals. We see the baskets that were woven and the pottery designs. We are shown the masks that were made and how they played a part in ceremonies.

Historian Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold turn the clock back 500 years to the early Tudor period to become tenant farmers on monastery land.

Tony Robinson explores the major uprising across large parts of England in 1381; it's origins, motives, and aftermath.

Historian Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold turn the clock back 500 years to the early Tudor period to become tenant farmers on monastery land.

Tony Robinson explores the major uprising across large parts of England in 1381; it's origins, motives, and aftermath.

Dr. Suzannah Lipscomb unfolds the extraordinary story of the tumultuous love affair between Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, and asks: was it really love that brought them together - and was it love that tore them apart?

This is the story of the dramatic and violent life of the Middle Ages' most important emperor: Charlemagne. His life as a political strategist, a passionate lover, a man that conquered most of Europe, and a cultural visionary.

Sir William Wallace, Robin Hood, and King Harold are three of the most famous men of medieval Britain. Tony Robinson will unlock the truth behind some of the most prominent and almost mythical people from our history. Tony Robinson uncovers the real stories behind some of the greatest figures in history.