The Dark Ages Podcast

Five Kings and Some Romans

513 to 552 CE

Putting on the afterburners to get through about fifty years of Visigothic history, as the Balt dynasty runs out into the sand, and uncertainty and internal division opens the door to outside powers.

Webpage for this Episode https://darkagespod.com/2024/07/21/50-five-kings-and-some-romans/

This episode sponsored in part by manscaped.com, enter discount code DARKAGES at checkout for 20% off and free shipping!

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Title Music:

Sound effects from freesound.com

And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Conquest and Crisis: Visigoth Hispania, Pt. 1

 456 to 513 CE

After beating up on the Suevi it was the Visigoths’ turn to be beaten up by the Franks. After years of expansion, the Visigoths are forced to realign themselves south, under a new, unlucky king.

Webpage for this Episode https://darkagespod.com/2024/07/02/conquest-and-crisis-visigoth-hispania-pt-1/

This episode sponsored in part by manscaped.com, enter discount code DARKAGES at checkout for 20% off and free shipping!

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Title Music:

Sound effects from freesound.com

And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

The Kingdom of the Suevi

 C.418 to 470

The Suevi have been the unloved stepchildren of the Dark Ages Podcast for far too long, and finally get their own episode! They’re going to have to be happy with it because I don’t see anything else coming their way. We’ll trace their origins in the forests of Germania, their establishment of a kingdom in northwestern Hispania, and the fortunes of their three most successful kings, before it all turns to mush in the end.

Webpage for this Episode https://darkagespod.com/2024/06/17/48-the-kingdom-of-the-suevi/

This episode sponsored in part by manscaped.com, enter discount code DARKAGES at checkout for 20% off and free shipping!

Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod

Title Music:

Sound effects from freesound.com

And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

C.406 to 452

And we’re back! Thank you to everyone for your patience and kind emails and messages, they meant a lot to me and kept me motivated to come back.

Hispania was a peaceful and prosperous part of the Roman Empire for much of its history, and a popular retirement destination. The arrival of the Vandals, Suevi, and Alans, followed by the Visigoths, put all that peace and tranquility firmly in the rear view mirror.

Webpage for this Episode darkagespod.com/2024/06/10/47-roman-hispania/

This episode sponsored in part by manscaped.com, enter DARKAGES at checkout for 20% off and free shipping!

Buy me a coffee with ko-fi.com/darkagespod

Title Music:

Sound effects from freesound.com

And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

1. The Fall of Italy

March 538 - May 540

The Gothic War grew in intensity after the siege of Rome, and Belisarius had to deal with threats both from without and from within his own army as he fought to bring it to a successful conclusion. The war spread across northern Italy, with devastating consequences for the civilian populace.

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What happens when I wander off topic into the wilds of Magical Practice in Byzantine Egypt? You get a bonus episode, that’s what! 

This one explores a story of one particular Egyptian saint, and the strange case of the woman transformed into a horse. It’s just a bit of anthropological fun. We’ll be back to Belisarius in the next episode.

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Other Music:

"Ritual" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

"Rites" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

"Shaving Mirror" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Sound effects from freesound.com

And https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/

Wives, Lovers, and The Worst Year Ever

This episode is all over the place. It features marital infidelity, official corruption, Swiss glaciers, an Icelandic volcano, and an attempt at an Irish accent that inevitably slides into a Scottish one in less than four words. Enjoy.

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November 536 to March 538

Belisarius continues moving up the Italian Peninsula, to bring his army to attack the greatest prize: Rome itself.

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Theodahad’s Thirty Pigs

535 to 536

The death of Amalasuintha triggered the Gothic Wars, wherein the Eastern Empire, under Justinian, attempted to claw back what it had lost in Italy. This episode follows the war up to  the siege of Naples by Belisarius in the autumn of 536.

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