Ep 68. The Bloody Tyrant. In Dante's Inferno, one of the murderous tyrants condemned to spend eternity up to his eyeballs in boiling blood is Ezzelino da Romano, who features in this week's episode. What, if anything, has he done to deserve this? 👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/068-the-bl...

Episode 67: The Wonder of the World. In 1232, Venice had a visit from a short ginger-haired man in his late 30s. But this was no random tourist; it was Emperor Frederick II, Stupor Mundi. This week we're looking at his background.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/067-the-wo...

Ep66. Beat It. Campo S Zanipolo features a couple of times in this week's episode, alongside choirs of angels, a disturbing enthusiasm for whips, St Francis' magic walking stick, and all the rest of the strangeness of C13th religion.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/066-beat-it/

Ep 65: We can't tell you whether his family fortune came from a golden cow, his mother was named after fro-yo, or his son was pulled apart by dogs (probably not, in each case) but we can tell you plenty of other things about the 42nd Doge, Pietro Ziani.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/065-the-pe...

Happy Birthday to a still young Republic, from a very old former one. Hang in there. We went through some rough times early on, too.

Episode 64: Rivals. In the early 1200s, Venice and Genoa are entering into a long-running rivalry. Today we look some of the background, as well as the state of other eastern Mediterranean nations. Because everyone's in a mess.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/064-rivals/

Episode 63: The Castle of Love. Easter 1214. The centrepiece of Treviso's week-long "court of solace and mirth" is a Castle of Love celebration, where ladies defend against men throwing flowers and spices. What could possibly go wrong? Listen to find out.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/063-the-ca...

Episode 62: A Place in the Sun. After the "Crusade", the Venetians turned their minds to the Greek islands. But the Genoese had already made a move on the biggest prize on offer -- Crete. Find out how Venice responded in this week's episode.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/062-a-plac...

Casanova, Part 9. Giacomo in Paris. In this week's episode, coincidentally released on the 328th anniversary of his death, a 26-year-old Casanova visits Paris and surprisingly struggles to cope with the city's manners and morals.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/casanova-p...

"Never Again!" thundered a local Venetian newspaper in July 1989. Find out why in this week's Art and Culture special episode, "Pin Floi" (we'll also tell you what Pin Floi means, if you don't know).👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/art-and-cu...

Episode 61. Booty Call. Who is this noseless guy, what's he doing in Venice, and why is he referred to as Carmagnola when that clearly isn't who he is? We investigate this and other items of crusading booty in our latest episode.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/061-booty-...

Episode 60. Top Doge, 12th Century. This week, Doges Sebastiano Ziani and Enrico Dandolo battle it out to be rated as our Top Doge of the 1100s. Will it be the Peace Doge or the Blind Crusader who earns a place on the Bucintoro of Destiny?👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/060-top-do...

Ep58: Putting Humpty Together Again. As Easter Week 1204 brought an end to the 4th Crusade's initial looting and vandalism, all semblance of this being a united force with a common goal vanished into the springtime air like dandelion seeds in the breeze.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/058-puttin...

Episode 57: The View from Constantinople. We're joined by Marco from Storia d'Italia and Robin from The History of Byzantium this week to discuss the 4th Crusade from a broader perspective.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/057-the-vi...

Episode 56: Downfall. It's April 1204, and the Venetian navy is ready for one final assault on Constantinople. The future of an Empire and a Republic will turn on what happens in the next few days. 👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/056-downfa...

Episode 55. Raising Eyebrows. December 1203. The Venetian navy is stuck outside Constantinople. A new power is rising in the Empire -- a man with notoriously big eyebrows. Who will prevail? Find out more as our story continues.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/055-raisin...

Ok, it's not the exact quote from King Theoden, but Villehardouin's words are close enough. If you listened to our last episode, maybe you thought that the war had begun already. Well, it certainly has by the end of today's episode, "Out of the Frying Pan".👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/054-out-of...

Episode 53: Someone Else's Civil War. "The destiny of Republics and Empires hangs in the balance, as The Fates make their capricious decision on whose thread to cut first." I enjoyed writing this one so much. histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/053-someon...

Ep 52: Let's Make Poor Decisions. Yes, this meme is years past its zeitgeist moment, but sometime the shoe just fits. This week, the "crusade" finally makes the momentous decision to try a bit of regime change in New Rome, causing fury in Actual Rome.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/052-lets-m...

Art&Culture Episode 7: Legend of the Golden Ring A humble fisherman is giving a precious ring to the Doge. Why? Find out the supernatural legend behind it in this week's episode, featuring a dark and stormy night, a demonic pirate ship and three saints.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/art-and-cu...

Episode 50: Excommunication? What Excommunication? The Crusaders owe Venice huge sums of money for the fleet. Venice suggests using it to capture the nearby rival city of Zara. The Pope says no. Venice doesn't care what he thinks. This won't end well.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/051-excomm...

It's the @intelligentspeech.bsky.social annual event on Saturday. We'll be there, looking at how Venice's relationship with Constantinople went from companions to rivals over the 12th century. You can grab a last-minute ticket at intelligentspeechonline.com. Use the code VENICE for a 10% discount.

Episode 50. Show Me The Money. Here's our Crusading Chronicler, Geoffroi de Villehardouin, with bags full of cash. It's not enough to pay for the fleet, though. And that means trouble, with a capital T, which rhymes with Zee, and that stands for Zara. 👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/050-show-m...

This guy's index finger makes him look like Medieval ET telling his listeners to phone home. But no, it's superstar preacher Fulk of Neuilly, encouraging everyone to join a new Crusade in 1199. 👑 Find out more in this week's episode, "Crusaders Assemble". histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/048-crusad...

Ep 47: Introducing the Crusade of the Liars. The 4th Crusade is a big story for us, so we're starting off with a bit of background. Marco Cappelli from Storia d'Italia joins us to set the scene before it all kicks off. (picture - Pope Innocent III)👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/047-introd...

Enrico Dandolo is (I think) the only Doge who features in a Dan Brown novel. Should we see him as a great betrayer, a national hero, or something else? This week, we look at his early years in office in Episode 46, "Blind Man's Promise". histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/046-blind-...

Snap.

La Befana is going to be busy in Italy soon, so she made her UK delivery a couple of days early. 🟠⚫🟢

Sadie Dog is an integral part of the podcast process. It's on our walks that we discuss the next episode and give it a narrative shape. In Episode 44, "Chaos with Choniates", you're invited to join our virtual dog walk as we tell a wild story.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/044-chaos-...

Episode 43. Bring Them Home. A few episodes again, we left thousands of Venetians languishing in Byzantine prisons thanks to Emperor Manuel Komnenos (left). The crisis would take a decade to resolve, but somehow it was Byzantium that emerged weaker from it.👑 histvenicepod.podbean.com/e/043-bring-...