13 GREAT HISTORY PODCASTS

If you're passionate about history but don't have the time or the resources to do all the reading yourself, fear not, a bunch of knowledgeable people have done it for you. Now you can painlessly absorb it all and become brainy as you walk the dog or cook dinner. The following represents my personal selection of quality podcasts. And trust me, I know what I'm talking about, being both a trained historian and a former podcaster.

I've deliberately placed some of the more well-known shows towards the end of the list in order to give prominence to some of the more obscure, but no less worthy efforts.

All are currently active at the time of writing. 

Click on the picture to go to the podcast’s website.

 1. Literature and History Podcast

Doug Metzger's superbly-produced show takes you chronologically through the world's greatest literature, placing it in its historical context and deftly synthesing each work, getting to the heart of it in a humorous and entertaining manner. Episodes are long and conclude with a funny original song by the talented host. This podcast makes you want to go out and read the works for yourself, armed with the precise knowledge Doug has given you to enrich your understanding and enjoyment.

2. The Ancient World 

Slick and well-produced, the dryly humorous host Scott covers the less well-worn paths of ancient history. His first series was a chronology of the earliest civilizations (Mesopotamia, Indus Valley, Norte Chico, Hittites, Minoa, Egypt, etc). He followed this with a series covering the history of those pioneers who uncovered this history, a tale which is as fascinating as the ancient stories themselves. Next, an ambitious arc following an ancient bloodline in the Near East, encompassinig among others, Queen Zenobia of Palmyra and Julia Domna, wife of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus. At the time of writing he has begun a fourth series on the Seleucid Empire. 

3. The History of the Twentieth Century

Hosted by Mark Painter, this ambitious podcast takes an in-depth look at this most turbulent of centuries. If you think you know it all already, think again: Mark offers fresh insight into the period, highlighting art and other cultural facets as well as the better known political and military fare. Entertaining and informative, the podcast covers the entire globe, not just the usual major nations.


4. The Almost Forgotten

As the title suggests, this well-researched and well-recorded show highlights some of the many figures and events, sometimes pivotal, that have somehow fallen by the wayside of common knowledge. Covering various epochs and geographical locations, you can learn about such topics as The Dutch Revolt, the Normans in Italy, great Hittite and Persian kings, Khmer princes and Eugene of Savoy, to mention just a few.


5. History of The Crusades

This long-running podcast hosted by Sharyn Eastaugh covered first the more familiar crusades to recover the Holy Land, then the Albigensian Crusade against the 'heretic' Cathars of southern France, and now the lesser-known but equally fascinating Baltic crusades (astonishingly, this area was still pagan as late as the fourteenth century). Despite the poor audio quality of earlier episodes, the depth of research and delivery make this a very entertaining and enlightening show.


6. When Diplomacy Fails

Irishman Zack Twamley is one of the most prolific history podcasters out there, sometimes overwhelming the listener by the sheer volume of content, but the quality of his work makes this a good thing. As the name of the podcast suggests, the focus is more on diplomacy than actual military matters (sometimes being a little too thin on the practical aspects of warfare). The show shifts around in time and subject, often ​focusing on large in-depth projects such as his memorable July Crisis series, a day-by-day telling of the events leading up to the outbreak of World War One released exactly a hundred years later. He is currently doing a similar treatment of the Treaty of Versailles. Other topics having included the Easter Rising, the Thirty Years War and plenty of lesser-known European conflicts. If you like detail, Zack is your man.

7. Tides of History

This extremely slick and professionally produced podcast is hosted by Patrick Wyman, who has a Phd in the field. The show specializes in the medieval and early modern period, with topics such as the Black Death, the impact of the printing press, the Wars of the Roses and the rise of the Ottomans. What makes this show stand out is the host bringing the history to life by reconstructing the experience of actual people, a counterpoint to the grand sweep of events. 


8. The History of WWII Podcast

Presented by Ray Harris, this long-running show presents a chronological telling of the war in exceptional detail. Although many may feel the topic is too well-known, Ray presents many aspects that may have escaped the casual History fan. To illustrate the depth of this show, it has only just reached Pearl Harbor and has already been going for years! Particularly memorable are the long series of episodes devoted to the stories of prominent leaders such as Churchill and Stalin, each of which could have been a separate podcast in themselves. My only criticism of this podcast is Ray's slightly odd delivery in which he reads his scripts in an unnaturally slow and stilted pace. 

9. The History of England

Another long-running show which I have only discovered recently, having previously subscribed to another, lesser, History of England podcast. Geoff Crowther broadcasts proudly from his shed - and it sounds like it - but the content is top-notch. Shot through with British humour, the witty host presents a highly detailed chronological romp through English history, dispelling many of the myths and simplifications I was taught at school.


10. History of English Podcast

For all you budding etymologists out there, Kevin Stroud's well produced and researched show charts the development of the English language from its Indo-European roots onwards. Full of fascinating detail about the origin of various words and phrases, it's a treasure trove of little-known facts concerning the tongue we all take for granted so much.



11. The History of Byzantium

Byzantium is often overlooked by Western Europeans - I don't remember hearing anything about it at all at school. Robin Pierson redresses this imbalance through his richly detailed narrative beginning from the fall of the western half of the Roman Empire in the fifth century. The story proves to be every bit as interesting as the much better known stories of Ancient Rome and medieval Europe. 


12. Our Fake History

Sebastian Major's podcast is a little different from the usual chronological approach to a specific area of history : rather, he examines topics from varying epochs and locations in order to detach the actual events from the mythology. Sometimes tackling well-known stories such as Atlantis, Clepatra, the Crusades and Robin Hood, he does a great job of getting to the heart of the real history behind the distortions and sImplifications. However, he also presents more obscure topics like Madame Blavatsky, Prester John, the Siege of Vienna and the invention of rock and roll. The only small criticism I have of this otherwise fine show is the rather irritating them music ;-)

13. Revolutions

Pioneering history podcaster Mike Duncan takes us on an in-depth journey into some of the most prominent revolutions in history (the French, the American, the English, the Mexican), and some of the less well-known (the Haitian, the various events of 1848). Well-researched and well-produced.



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