History Unbound

We're back in China and not a minute too soon. There's a lot going on,  from the fall of the Han Dynasty through the Sui, Tang, and into the Song. This also is the final episode of season 1.  Tune in soon for season 2 and a lot more of the history you want to know.

With the Byzantine Empire along the Mediterranean, and the Sassanid Empire in Persia, the last of the classical empires ruled the world. Then something happened in the desolate peninsula of Arabia that would change the balance of power in the Middle East and the world.  An Arab businessman had a vision that would lead to a religion that would swallow up both Persia and the Byzantines, and eventually collect 1.9 billion people.  The man was Muhammad and the religion was Islam.

In the last episode, we talked about the fall of the western Roman Empire. But what about the other half? This episode looks at the Byzantine Empire led by two brash young visionaries - Justinian and Theodora. They dream about putting Rome back together again, but can they even protect themselves from the powerful Sassanid Persian Empire?

If so,  can they really put the band back together again?

Yes, we're back in Rome, looking at the fall of the western Roman Empire and what happened next. You could also think of this episode as Christianity Part 2, since the Roman Church was gaining power in the 5th century and continued to grow after the fall of Rome. But who took over? Listen and find out!

We are looking at India again in an age of Buddhism and Hinduism living in harmony. Its the Mauryan and Gupta Dynasties and an almost-unified India. But does it last? And what do they accomplish, really? And what does it have to do with Star Wars? Listen to History Unbound and find out! 

We're finally back in China. It's after the fall of the Qin Dynasty, and there's a new emperor in town. But unlike the 11-year-long Qin, the Han Dynasty lasted for 400 years. What happened during that time? And what happens when China's most powerful empire meets Europe's? Do the Romans play nice? Listen in and find out.

We're still in the Roman Empire, but today we're looking at the religions of Rome.  It's the Greek religion repackaged, but it's also uniquely Roman with religion on every level of society, and the emperor as the supreme religious leader. Then along comes a tiny offshoot of Judaism that is bound to fail. A fledgling religion that comes to be known as Christianity. How much change can one Jewish carpenter from Nazareth make, anyway, compared to the might of Rome? Listen and find out!

Julius Caesar has been killed, and it's a dark day for Rome. They can't move forward into something new and they can't go back to what they had. Then Octavian, Caesar's adopted son, takes matters into his own hands and creates a new Rome.  An empire. But Octavian is no Emperor Palpatine - he merges their republican past with an imperial future to usher in a golden age for Rome. But, all good things must come to an end, and Rome is no exception. Join us to see what happens as Rome begins to fall apart, and is forced to rise from the ashes once again.

Now that we've looked at Alexander and the spread of Hellenism, we shift our attention to a fledgling Rome. They outgrow the Etruscans, expand across the Italian Peninsula, and take on the big power in the Mediterranean. Somehow they prevail and create something entirely unique in classical history. But can it last? (Spoiler alert: no)

We are back in Greece 150 after the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars. The Poleis are weak from a century of infighting, and Phillip II steps onto the stage. He has modernized the barbarian kingdom of Macedon and spends the next 12 years conquering all of Greece. His goal: invade Persia and even the score. But before he can carry out his plan, he is murdered. Now there is no one to take over but his 19-year-old son, Alexander.  Can he be great enough to succeed?