Episodes

  • The Hospitallers: Warrior Monks
    Jan 23 2026

    Matt Lewis explores the evolution of the Knights Hospitaller, from charitable brotherhood to a formidable fighting force at the heart of the Crusades. How did they reconcile their piety with the brutality of medieval warfare? How did their growing military and financial power reshape the fragile politics of the Holy Land? And how did they endure as one of the most resilient institutions in medieval Europe?

    Matt is joined by Dr. Rory McClellan to delve into the origins, purpose, daily life, and lasting legacy of this remarkable order.


    MORE


    The Knights Templar

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Crusader Criminals

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis. Audio editor is Max Carrie. The producers are Joseph Knight and Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 14 mins
  • The Eleanor Crosses
    Jan 20 2026

    The death in 1290 of Eleanor of Castile, beloved Queen of King Edward I, sparked one of the grandest gestures of royal mourning in English history. Her body was carried on a 200-mile journey from Lincoln to London, commemorated at each of its 12 overnight stops by a monumental cross.

    Dr. Eleanor Janega visits two of the surviving Eleanor Crosses with Alice Loxton and tells the extraordinary love story between Edward and Eleanor that inspired these monuments.


    MORE

    King Edward I: Hammer of the Scots

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    How To Be A Medieval Teenager with Alice Loxton

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. Edited and produced by Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here:

    https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    47 mins
  • The Origins of Greenland
    Jan 16 2026

    With Greenland in the news, you may be wondering how and why Greenland became inhabited in the first place. Like all great stories, it is a medieval one! Matt Lewis retells the fascinating tale of Norse Greenland, from the arrival of Norse explorers over a thousand years ago to the mysterious disappearance of their settlements and the myths and legends surrounding the Viking presence in Greenland.


    MORE

    Norse Mythology: Creation Myths

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    How To Live Like A Viking

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis. Audio editor is Amy Haddow. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    47 mins
  • The Sagas of the Earls of Orkney
    Jan 13 2026

    Sail north with Gone Medieval to Orkney’s storm-lashed islands, where saints, shipwrecks, blood-feuds and tax disputes all unfold in the Sagas of the Earls of Orkney. Dr Eleanor Janega is joined by Professor Judith Jesch to explore Saint Magnus, turf-cutting Viking Earls, miracle-working dice games, and how a new translation reshapes this Norse world for modern readers.


    MORE

    Scotland's Stone of Scone

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Viking Warrior Women

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the producers are Rob Weinberg and Amy Haddow. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 3 mins
  • Tower of London: Medieval Prison
    Jan 9 2026

    Locked in the Tower of London after hours, Matt Lewis searches for his vanished co‑host Dr. Eleanor Janega. They swap wild escape stories of Ranulf Flambard and Roger Mortimer, and shiver inside the Bloody Tower discussing legendary prisoners including Princes in the Tower, Henry VI and William Wallace. Along the way, they meet a former Tower resident with a ghost in his bedroom, an unused toilet for Hitler, and a menagerie of spectral bears, barrels and bile.


    MORE

    The Princes In The Tower

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Roger Mortimer: The Usurper

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Recorded at the Tower of London with thanks to Historic Royal Palaces.

    Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis and Dr. Eleanor Janega. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    54 mins
  • Tower of London: Medieval Palace
    Jan 6 2026

    In the first of two special episodes from the iconic Tower of London, Dr. Eleanor Janega charts the transformation of the William the Conqueror's Norman fortress by Henry II and Edward I into an opulent royal palace. Now imaginatively recreated, the palace is brought to life with furniture, tapestries, original artefacts, and vivid illustrations. Eleanor is guided by curator Dr. Charles Farris who tells the stories of ambition, intrigue and the royal court within the Tower’s grand medieval rooms.


    MORE

    Castles, Kings and Courtly Life

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Norwich Castle

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Recorded at the Tower of London with thanks to Historic Royal Palaces.

    Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 5 mins
  • The Kingdom of Mercia
    Jan 2 2026

    Once the powerhouse of the Anglo-Saxon world, the kingdom of Mercia dominated not just Wessex but nearly all its neighbouring realms. At its height, Mercia held sway over regions that include modern Birmingham and even London. Though the kingdom eventually faded with the rise of Alfred the Great, its story—and its influence—were far from over.

    In this episode, Matt Lewis sits down with historian Annie Whitehead to uncover the enduring legacy of the Mercians. From the fierce warrior-king Penda, to the empire-building Offa, to the legendary Lady Godiva, the people of Mercia helped shape the foundations of the English nation in ways both dramatic and surprising.


    MORE

    Rise of Wessex

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Why The Early Middle Ages Matter

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis, edited by Ella Blaxill and Amy Haddow and produced by Rob Weinberg. The Senior Producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    44 mins
  • Medieval Europe's Most Evil Monarch
    Dec 30 2025

    Who was the worst Medieval monarch?

    Dr. Eleanor Janega teams up with the hosts of our sister podcast After Dark to delve into the lives of some of Europe's most notorious medieval monarchs..and rank them! From Pedro the Cruel of Portugal to Richard the Lionheart, and from Isabella the She Wolf of France to Vlad the Impaler, the team unravel their nefarious deeds and personal vendettas to decide who can be crowned as the worst monarch.


    MORE

    Richard the Lionheart

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    Queen Isabella: She-Wolf of France

    Listen on Apple

    Listen on Spotify


    This episode was edited by Tim Artsall and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

    Gone Medieval is presented by Dr. Eleanor Janega. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

    All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

    Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Show More Show Less
    49 mins