BBC Radio Podcasts from In Our Time: History
The Theory of the Leisure Class
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Veblen on conspicuous consumption and conspicuous leisure.
The Barbary Corsairs
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the impact of North African privateers on law and language
The Federalist Papers
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Hamilton, Madison and Jay's urgings for a US Constitution.
The Economic Consequences of the Peace
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Keynes' influential attack on the Treaty of Versailles
Louis XIV: The Sun King
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and reign of the French king who built Versailles
The Shimabara Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1637-8 Christian uprising in Japan.
The Battle of Crécy
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1346 conflict between the armies of France and England
Cnut
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Dane who became a powerful King of England in 1016.
Mercantilism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the idea which dominated European economies for 300 years.
Megaliths
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss what we know about ancient stones placed in the landscape.
Chartism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 19th-century campaign for greater democracy.
Tycho Brahe
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 16th-century astronomer, renowned for his accuracy.
The Great Stink
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1858 crisis from the flow of sewage into the Thames.
The Irish Rebellion of 1798
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the causes and early consequences of the 1798 rebellion.
Demosthenes' Philippics
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the speeches that set the standard for political attacks.
The Morant Bay Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the events in Jamaica in 1865 and their consequences.
The Knights Templar
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the rise and abrupt fall of the famous military order.
Angkor Wat
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great Cambodian temple complex, begun 900 years ago.
Comenius
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 17th-century Czech educator committed to toleration.
The Davidian Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the lasting impact of David I, King of Scotland c1084-1153
Olympe de Gouges
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the author of The Declaration of the Rights of Woman, 1791
Homo erectus
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the two-million-year span of our most adaptable ancestor.
The Arthashastra
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ancient Indian Sanskrit text the Arthashastra.
In Our Time is now first on BBC Sounds
New episodes will now be available first on Sounds for 28 days before other podcast apps.
Peter Kropotkin
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the prominent Russian anarchist and his idea of Mutual Aid
The Temperance Movement
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the enthusiasm in Britain for abstaining from alcohol.
The Gold Standard
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss what happened when world currencies were tied to gold
The Hittites
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the great powers of the Late Bronze Age.
The May Fourth Movement
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ideas and protests in 1919 that shaped modern China.
The Battle of Trafalgar
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Nelson's famous victory and death on 21 October 1805.
The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Europe's largest republic, before its partition in 1772.
The Manhattan Project
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the race to build an atom bomb before anyone else in WW2
Herodotus
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Greek writer known as the father of history.
Edward Gibbon
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the author of Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
Booth's Life and Labour Survey
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Charles Booth's landmark survey of London's poor and rich.
The Interregnum
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the upheavals of 1649-60 in the British Isles
The Second Barons' War
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Simon de Montfort's fatal struggle with Henry III's forces
Ovid
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the most influential poets of Rome's Augustan Age.
The Franco-American Alliance 1778
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the French fight against Britain in America and its impact
Pierre-Simon Laplace
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great French mathematician behind metrication.
The Russo-Japanese War
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1904-5 clash of Japanese and Russian empires.
David Ricardo
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Ricardo's argument on free trade after the Napoleonic wars
Marcus Aurelius
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and meditations of 'the last good Roman emperor'.
The Plague of Justinian
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the scale and impact of the plague that raged in 541AD.
The Cultural Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Mao's uprising against his own party from 1966-76
The Zong Massacre
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the infamous drowning of enslaved Africans in 1781.
Maria Theresa
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the woman who ruled Austria, shaking up the European order
Cave Art
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss how and why Stone Age people decorated caves with images.
Pericles
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the celebrated Athenian statesman and orator.
The Covenanters
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Presbyterian solidarity in C17th Scotland and its impact.
The Valladolid Debate
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the dispute in 1550 over enslavement of native Americans.
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Germanic tribes' destruction of three Roman legions.
Alcuin
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the scholar who revived learning for its own sake in C8th
The Siege of Paris 1870-71
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Paris under Prussian siege and then under the Commune
Tutankhamun
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb and what that revealed
Coffee
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history of coffee and its impact
Lawrence of Arabia
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Lawrence of Arabia for this year's Listener Week
Li Shizhen
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the heights of medical knowledge under the Ming dynasty
Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the most powerful woman in the C12th Kingdom of Jerusalem
The Treaty of Limerick
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the treaty ending the Williamite War in Ireland in 1691
Napoleon's Retreat from Moscow
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss why Napoleon's apparent victory turned to defeat in 1812.
Doggerland
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Stone Age human habitats now covered by the North Sea.
The Mytilenaean Debate
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Athenians' change of mind in the Peloponnesian War.
The Inca
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the advanced Andean empire, dominant until Pizarro arrived
President Ulysses S Grant
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Grant's role in reconstructing the USA after the Civil War
The Gordon Riots
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the causes of the violence of June 1780 and repercussions.
Nero
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the most notorious rulers of ancient Rome.
The Great Irish Famine
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the causes and consequences of the Famine of 1845-49.
The Danelaw
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Danish impact on England in 9th and 10th centuries.
William Cecil
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the most powerful man in the court of Elizabeth I.
Antarah ibn Shaddad
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the poetry and context of this pre-Islamic Arabian knight
Owain Glyndwr
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the fight for Welsh independence in the early 15th century
The Poor Laws
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Poor Law of 1834 and the rise of the workhouse
The Thirty Years War
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the devastating war across the Holy Roman Empire 1618-1648
The Long March
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Red Army's retreat across China, from October 1934
Horace
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Roman poet Horace, who flourished under Augustus.
Marie Antoinette
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Austrian princess, guillotined as Queen of France.
The Fable of the Bees
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Mandeville's work on the public benefit of private vices.
Is Shakespeare History? The Romans
Melvyn Bragg discusses the impact of Shakespeare's approach to history (programme 2 of 2).
Is Shakespeare History? The Plantagenets
Melvyn Bragg discusses the impact of Shakespeare's approach to history (programme 1 of 2)
The Mexican-American War
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1846-48 war that cost Mexico half its territory.
Montesquieu
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss republicanism, despotism and the separation of powers.
Persepolis
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Achaemenid Empire's great ceremonial capital.
Margaret of Anjou
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Queen of England at the start of the Wars of the Roses
The Emancipation of the Serfs
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the freeing of a third of Russians from serfdom in 1861.
The Almoravid Empire
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the great empires of the Islamic west.
Roman Slavery
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the relationship between slavery and the power of Rome.
Tocqueville: Democracy in America
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Alexis de Tocqueville's analysis of American democracy.
The Highland Clearances
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss evictions and migrations in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Sun Tzu and The Art of War
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the influential ancient Chinese work on military strategy.
Frederick Douglass
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and ideas of Frederick Douglass, born to slavery.
The Siege of Malta, 1565
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Ottoman attack on the Knights Hospitaller in Malta.
Thomas Becket
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life, murder and impact of Thomas Becket (c 1118-1170)
Thebes
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Greek city of Thebes in myth, drama and history.
The Picts
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss history and culture of the Picts.
Picasso's Guernica
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the events behind and impact of Picasso's iconic work.
The Congress of Vienna
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Congress of Vienna, 1814-15.
Constantine the Great
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Roman emperor Constantine the Great.
The American Populists
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the rural protest movement in America's Gilded Age.
The Battle of Lincoln 1217
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the fight for the English crown at the Battle of Lincoln.
The Egyptian Book of the Dead
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ancient Egyptian funerary text, The Book of the Dead.
Roger Bacon
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the medieval scholar Roger Bacon.
Rosa Luxemburg
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and times of Rosa Luxemburg, revolutionary.
The Battle of Salamis
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the significance of The Battle of Salamis, 480BC.
Seneca the Younger
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the works, life and times of Seneca the Younger.
Mary, Queen of Scots
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history of Mary, Queen of Scots.
Johannes Kepler
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss astronomer Johannes Kepler.
The Gin Craze
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the cause and impact of the gin craze in the 18th century.
Harriet Martineau
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and works of Harriet Martineau, writer.
Garibaldi and the Risorgimento
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Garibaldi and the Risorgimento, for our Listener Week.
Baltic Crusades
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss crusades against Baltic pagans from 12th Century onwards.
Justinian's Legal Code
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great impact of legal changes under emperor Justinian.
The Fighting Temeraire
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss JMW Turner's The Fighting Temeraire.
Epic of Gilgamesh
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Gilgamesh, the great epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia.
John Dalton
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss scientist John Dalton.
The 12th Century Renaissance
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss a period of great change in western Europe.
The Bronze Age Collapse
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Bronze Age collapse.
Margery Kempe and English Mysticism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Margery Kempe, the medieval English mystic.
The Gettysburg Address
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, 1863.
Titus Oates and his 'Popish Plot'
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Titus Oates and his fictitious Popish Plot.
1816, the Year Without a Summer
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss 1816, known as the year without a summer.
The Sikh Empire
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the Sikh Empire.
Agrippina the Younger
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Roman empress Agrippina the Younger.
Bedlam
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the early history of Bethlehem Hospital, known as Bedlam.
The Maya Civilization
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Maya civilization in central America.
The Dutch East India Company
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Dutch East India Company.
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Eleanor of Aquitaine, the most powerful woman of her time.
Thomas Paine's Common Sense
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense, published in 1776.
The Salem Witch Trials
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Salem witch trials.
The Battle of Lepanto
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Battle of Lepanto, 1571.
The Empire of Mali
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the empire of Mali.
Holbein at the Tudor Court
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Holbein at the court of Henry VIII.
Alexander the Great
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and legacy of Alexander the Great.
Frederick the Great
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Frederick II, king of Prussia from 1740 to 1786.
Prester John
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the legend of Prester John.
Josephus
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Flavius Josephus, author of The Jewish War.
The Lancashire Cotton Famine
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Lancashire cotton famine during the American Civil War
Tagore
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Rabindranath Tagore.
Matteo Ricci and the Ming Dynasty
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Matteo Ricci's 16th-century travels in Ming China.
The California Gold Rush
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the California Gold Rush of the 1850s.
The Curies
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the scientific achievements of the Curie family.
The Eunuch
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the history and significance of eunuchs.
The Wealth of Nations
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Adam Smith's economic treatise The Wealth of Nations.
Ashoka the Great
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Indian ruler Ashoka the Great.
Thucydides
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the ancient Greek historian Thucydides.
Brunel
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
Hatshepsut
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the female Egyptian pharaoh Hatshepsut.
The Haitian Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Haitian Revolution of 1791-1804.
The Battle of Talas
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Talas in AD751.
Julius Caesar
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the life and reputation of Julius Caesar.
Hildegard of Bingen
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the medieval writer and mystic Hildegard of Bingen.
The Bluestockings
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the 18th-century Bluestocking Society.
The Sino-Japanese War
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Second Sino-Japanese War.
The Domesday Book
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Domesday Book.
Strabo's Geographica
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Strabo's Geographica, an early work of geography.
Weber's The Protestant Ethic
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Weber's The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism.
Spartacus
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Roman gladiator and rebel leader Spartacus.
Chivalry
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss medieval chivalry.
The Phoenicians
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Phoenicians of the ancient Mediterranean.
Sources of Early Chinese History
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the sources for early Chinese history.
The Battle of Tours
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Tours of 732.
Plato's Symposium
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Plato's Symposium.
The Medici
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Medici family, rulers of Renaissance Florence.
Pliny the Younger
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Roman letter-writer Pliny the Younger.
Pocahontas
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the life of the Native American Pocahontas.
The Berlin Conference
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Berlin Conference and the Scramble for Africa.
The Corn Laws
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Corn Laws of the 19th century.
The Mamluks
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Mamluks, medieval rulers of Egypt and Syria.
The Physiocrats
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Physiocrats, important French economic thinkers.
Queen Zenobia
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Queen Zenobia, who led a rebellion against Ancient Rome.
The Putney Debates
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Putney Debates of 1647.
Alfred Russel Wallace
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the work of the biologist Alfred Russel Wallace.
Ice Ages
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss ice ages.
The War of 1812
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the War of 1812 between America and Great Britain.
The South Sea Bubble
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the South Sea Bubble of the early 18th century.
The Borgias
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Borgias, the most infamous family in Renaissance Italy
Hannibal
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the remarkable Carthaginian general Hannibal.
Gerald of Wales
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the medieval scholar Gerald of Wales.
The Druids
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Druids of ancient Europe.
Hadrian's Wall
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Hadrian's Wall.
Annie Besant
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the 19th-century writer and campaigner Annie Besant.
The An Lushan Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the An Lushan Rebellion.
1848: Year of Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss 1848, the year that saw Europe engulfed in revolution.
The Ming Voyages
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Ming Voyages of discovery.
The Minoan Civilisation
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Minoan Civilisation of Bronze Age Crete.
The Battle of Stamford Bridge
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Stamford Bridge.
Xenophon
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the ancient Greek historian and soldier Xenophon.
Custer's Last Stand
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Custer's Last Stand.
Octavia Hill
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Victorian social reformer Octavia Hill.
The Iron Age
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the dawn of the Iron Age.
The Medieval University
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the foundation of the medieval universities.
The Taiping Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Taiping Rebellion.
The Battle of Bannockburn
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Battle of Bannockburn.
The Mexican Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Mexican Revolution of 1910.
Consequences of the Industrial Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the influence of the Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Industrial Revolution.
Cleopatra
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Cleopatra, the famed last pharaoh of Egypt.
The Volga Vikings
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Volga Vikings.
The Spanish Armada
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Spanish Armada.
The Delphic Oracle
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the Delphic Oracle.
Pliny's Natural History
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Pliny's Natural History, one of the first encyclopedias.
Athelstan
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the reign of Athelstan, the first king of all England.
The Neanderthals
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the evolution and characteristics of the Neanderthals.
Edmund Burke
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the philosopher, politician and writer Edmund Burke.
The Great Wall of China
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss The Great Wall of China.
The Zulu Nation's Rise and Fall
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the rise and fall of the Zulu Nation.
The City - a history, part 2
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history of the city.
The City - a history, part 1
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the rise of the city, from its Bronze Age origins to 1800.
Boudica
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and mythologisation of Boudica.
The Indian Mutiny
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Indian Mutiny of 1857 and the rebellion which followed
Ibn Khaldun
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 14th-century Arab philosopher of history Ibn Khaldun.
The Glencoe Massacre
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Glencoe Massacre of 1692.
Mary Wollstonecraft
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and ideas of Mary Wollstonecraft.
The Samurai
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history and myth of the Samurai.
The Silk Road
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Silk Road, the trade routes which spanned Asia.
Sparta
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Ancient Greek city-state of Sparta.
The Siege of Munster
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Siege of Munster in 1534-35.
The Death of Elizabeth I
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the death of Queen Elizabeth I.
The Dreyfus Affair
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Dreyfus Affair, which tore France apart in the 1890s.
Akhenaten
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Pharaoh Akhenaten.
The Augustan Age
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Augustan Age in Rome.
The Trial of Charles I
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the trial of Charles I.
The Siege of Vienna
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 1683 siege of Vienna by the Ottoman Army.
The Magna Carta
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Magna Carta.
The Building of St Petersburg
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the building of St Petersburg.
Suffragism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss suffragism, the movement for women's voting rights.
The Boxer Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Boxer Rebellion in the summer of 1900.
The Library of Alexandria
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Library of Alexandria.
Carthage's Destruction
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Destruction of Carthage
History of History
Melvyn Bragg examines how the writing of history has changed over the years.
Thoreau and the American Idyll
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the philosopher and naturalist Henry David Thoreau.
The Great Reform Act
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Great Reform Act of 1832.
The Fire of London
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Great Fire of London and the rebuilding of the city.
Bolivar
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Simon Bolivar, the liberator of South America.
Tacitus and the Decadence of Rome
Melvyn Bragg examines the life and chronicles of the the Roman historian Tacitus.
The Arab Conquests
Melvyn Bragg examines the Arab conquests which helped communicate Islam to the world.
The Riddle of the Sands
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the prescient thriller about Anglo-German relations.
The Black Death
Melvyn Bragg and guests examine the Black Death and its effect on medieval society.
The Enclosures of the 18th Century
Melvyn Bragg examines the enclosure movement that fenced in the British countryside.
The Norman Yoke
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss ‘the Norman Yoke'.
The Dissolution of the Monasteries
Melvyn Bragg examines Henry VIII's policy of the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
The Statue of Liberty
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Statue of Liberty. .
Rudolph II
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Rudolph II and his Renaissance Court in Prague.
The Charge of the Light Brigade
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Charge of the Light Brigade.
The Sassanid Empire
Melvyn Bragg discusses the Sassanian Empire in Persia from the 3rd to the 7th century AD.
The Divine Right of Kings
Melvyn Bragg discusses the idea that kingly authority derives from God.
The Pilgrim Fathers
Melvyn Bragg discusses what the Pilgrim Fathers and the Mayflower mean to Americans.
The Siege of Orléans
Melvyn Bragg discusses Joan of Arc's role in the 1428 Siege of Orléans.
The Opium Wars
Melvyn Bragg discusses the 19th century Opium Wars between Britain and China.
Bismarck
Melvyn Bragg discusses the original Iron Chancellor, Otto Von Bismarck.
Genghis Khan
Melvyn Bragg discusses Genghis Khan and the Mongol Empire.
Constantinople Siege and Fall
Melvyn Bragg examines the 1453 siege of Constantinople which ended the Byzantine Empire.
The Peasants’ Revolt
Melvyn Bragg examines the 1381 Peasants’ Revolt, a pivotal moment in England’s history.
The Needham Question
Melvyn Bragg examines the Needham Question; why Europe, not China made modern technology.
The Diet of Worms
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the events that helped trigger the European Reformation.
The Spanish Inquisition
Melvyn Bragg examines the Spanish Inquisition, defenders of medieval orthodoxy.
Astronomy and Empire
Melvyn Bragg examines the relationship between astronomy and British Imperial expansion.
The Great Exhibition of 1851
Melvyn Bragg examines the exhibition that showcased Victorian Britain's industrial might.
The Carolingian Renaissance
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Emperor Charlemagne and the Carolingian Renaissance.
Catherine the Great
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Empress who transformed and modernized Russia.
The Abbasid Caliphs
Melvyn Bragg examines the Abbasid Caliphs, rulers of the Islamic world for 200 years.
The Oath
Melvyn Bragg and guests explore the importance of the oath in the Classical World.
The Peterloo Massacre
Melvyn Bragg examines the 1819 Peterloo Massacre and the brutality of the British state.
Greyfriars and Blackfriars
Melvyn Bragg looks at the religious orders of the Dominicans and the Franciscans.
The Field of the Cloth of Gold
Melvyn Bragg examines the Field of the Cloth of Gold, and Tudor conspicuous consumption.
The French Revolution's reign of terror
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the reign of terror during the French Revolution.
Archaeology and Imperialism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the link between archaeology and imperialism.
Alfred and the Battle of Edington
Melvyn Bragg examines King Alfred and the defeat of the Vikings at Battle of Edington.
Tsar Alexander II's assassination
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881.
The Roman Republic
The rise and eventual downfall of the Roman Republic which survived for 500 years.
Machiavelli and the Italian City States
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the political philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli.
Agincourt
The history and legacy of the English army's defeat of the French at Agincourt in 1415.
Washington and the American Revolution
Melvyn Bragg examines the first President of the US and what drove him to revolution.
Babylon
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the truth behind the empire of Babylon.
Heroism
Melvyn Bragg explores what defines a hero, and their place in classical society.
Tea
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss tea, the first truly global commodity.
China's Warring States period
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the astonishing productivity of the Chinese Golden Age.
The Norse Gods
Melvyn Bragg examines the myths and theology that inspired the Vikings.
The Mughal Empire
Melvyn Bragg and guests examine how much the British Raj owed to the Mughal Emperors.
Thermopylae
Melvyn Bragg examines the Battle of Thermopylae, a defining clash between East and West.
The Alphabet
Melvyn Bragg investigates how sounds turned into signs and signs became the alphabet.
St Bartholomew's Day Massacre
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the infamous St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in 1572.
Robin Hood
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the centuries old myth of the most romantic noble outlaw.
The Schism
Melvyn Bragg examines events surrounding the medieval division of the Christian Church.
The East India Company
The history of the private trading company that helped forge the British Empire.
The Aristocracy
Melvyn Bragg examines the origins, power and eventual decline of the British aristocracy.
The Art of War
The history and philosophy of warfare throughout the ages.
The Jacobite Rebellion
Melvyn Bragg examines the Stuart dynasty's final attempt to reclaim the throne of England.
Roman Britain
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 400 year history of the Romans in Britain.
The Spanish Civil War
Melvyn Bragg examines the causes, events and repercussions of the Spanish Civil War.
The Aztecs
Melvyn Bragg examines the creation, power and legacy of the Aztec Empire.
The Enlightenment in Scotland
Melvyn Bragg examines the emergence and impact of the Scottish Enlightenment.
Architecture and Power
Melvyn Bragg explores the ideas architecture expresses about our past and identity.
Slavery and Empire
Melvyn Bragg examines British imperialism and its captives, both slaves and Britons.
Heritage
Melvyn Bragg explores the relationship between heritage culture and the study of history.
Psychoanalysis and Democracy
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the impact of politics on psychoanalysis.
Cultural Imperialism
Melvyn Bragg examines how a dominant power can exert a cultural influence on its empire.
The American West
Melvyn Bragg explores the myths and harsh reality of the 19th century American pioneers.
Bohemia
The history of the ancient kingdom and its religious, national and ethnic ideologies.
Marriage
The history of marriage from ancient Greek and Babylonian times to today.
The Celts
Melvyn Bragg examines what we really know about the Celts of pre-Roman Britain.
Food
The cultural history of food in Modern Europe since the Renaissance.
Rome and European Civilization
Melvyn Bragg and guests assess the role that Rome has played in European civilization.
Third Crusade
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the highs and lows of the Third Crusade.
The British Empire
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ethos and legacy of the British Empire.
Confucius
Melvyn Bragg and guests examine the chinese philosophy of Confucianism.
Napoleon and Wellington
The comparative histories of two titans of 19th century history.
Democracy
Melvyn Bragg examines the origins of the most cherished form of government in the world.
Byzantium
The culture, history and legacy of the eastern Byzantine Empire.
The French Revolution's Legacy
The impact and legacy of the French Revolution on European culture and politics.
The Glorious Revolution
Melvyn Bragg considers whether the events of 1688 were really glorious or revolutionary.
The Roman Empire's Collapse in the 5th century
The causes and events of the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century.
Money
Melvyn Bragg examines whether economic factors really are behind all historical events.
The Restoration
Melvyn Bragg looks at the reign of Charles II and the consequences of the Restoration.
Humanism
The history and legacy of classical Humanism, invented by Cicero.
The Enlightenment in Britain
Melvyn Bragg examines the role of British thinkers in the 18th century Enlightenment.
The Tudor State
Melvyn Bragg looks at the re-shaping of England as a modern state by the Tudor dynasty.
Hitler in History
Melvyn Bragg examines Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany though historiographical theories.
London
The history of London from its Neolithic origin to the digitalised capital city of today.
Biography
Melvyn Bragg examines why the public is fascinated with the private lives of individuals.
The Wars of the Roses
The 15th century wars of the royal Houses of Lancaster and York.
New Wars
Melvyn Bragg examines whether we are in a new era in the history of modern warfare.
History and Understanding the Past
Melvyn Bragg examines whether we can ever predict the future by understanding the past.
Materialism and the Consumer
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the development and future of material culture.
Lenin
Melvyn Bragg investigates what drove the Soviet leader Lenin, and enabled his successes.
Republicanism
Melvyn Bragg examines how English republicanism has developed from Cromwell to today.
Economic Rights
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the relationship between democracy and capitalism.
Childhood
Melvyn Bragg looks at how perceptions of childhood have changed over the last 100 years.
Progress
Melvyn Bragg examines whether mankind has made as much moral as material progress.
Education
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history and the modern purpose of education.
Atrocity in the 20th Century
Melvyn Bragg examines the widespread and chilling inhumanity of the 20th century.
The Individual
Melvyn Bragg explores the concept of the individual from the Renaissance to today.
The Nation State
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss whether it is appropriate to think of the UK as a nation.
Utopia
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss why we are as enthralled as ever by the idea of a Utopia.
Africa
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the roots of Africa's current political and social crises.
Capitalism
Melvyn Bragg examines the history of capitalism from Marx to the collapse of Communism.
The Great Disruption
Melvyn Bragg looks at the 20th century shift from industrial to information society.
The Monarchy
Melvyn Bragg examines the enduring strengths and current role of the British monarchy.
Just War
Melvyn Bragg examines where the idea of a just war originated and if it can still exist.
History as Science
Melvyn Bragg examines the importance of geography and ecology in shaping world history.
The British Empire's Legacy
Melvyn Bragg examines the impact of Britain’s colonial past on its current identity.
The American Century
Melvyn Bragg examines how legitimate it is to call the 20th century the American century.
History's relevance in the 20th century
Melvyn Bragg considers the relevance of the study of history in the 20th century.
Work in the 20th Century
Melvyn Bragg examines the changing ideas about the function of work in the 20th century.
The City in the 20th Century
Melvyn Bragg looks at the innovative developments of the city in the 20th century.
Politics in the 20th Century
Melvyn Bragg discusses politics and morality with Gore Vidal and Alan Clarke.
War in the 20th Century
Melvyn Bragg explores ideas that have influenced 20th century human rights and warfare.