The History Network

A combination of two battles fought close together in Northumberland in April and May 1464 brought Lancastrian resistance to the Yorkist king Edward IV to an end during the Wars of the Roses until 1469. These battles are of extreme importance but are confused in the primary sources and often elided in modern accounts into a single battle, the last one fought at Hexham on May 15th (although the date of the battle is also unclear). One of the reasons for this confusion is that the battles were fought close together within a very short space of time, only three weeks apart. Dur: 21mins File: .mp3

Picture the Suffolk coast on a stormy night in 1940. Waves crash against a bleak shingle bank, the wind howls through the marshes, and blackout shades cover every window in the tiny hamlet of Shingle Street. It was a place where the war felt uncomfortably close. Just across the North Sea lay occupied Europe. German bombers roared overhead almost nightly, and rumours of an imminent invasion travelled faster than the tide. It was here, in this lonely corner of England, that one of the strangest legends of the Second World War was born. Dur: 27mins File: .mp3

In the third of this three part series we conclude our look at the eight recipients of the Victoria Cross who forfeited the award due to their later actions as well as other recipients who fell on hard times, and with particular reference to the case of modern Victoria Cross for Australian recipient Ben-Roberts Smith, accused of murder and war crimes in Afghanistan. Dur: 26mins File: .mp3

In the second of this three part series we continue our look at the eight recipients of the Victoria Cross who forfeited the award due to their later actions as well as other recipients who fell on hard times. Dur: 21mins File: .mp3

In this three part series we look at the eight recipients of the Victoria Cross who forfeited the award due to their later actions as well as other recipients who fell on hard times, and with particular reference to the case of modern Victoria Cross for Australian recipient Ben-Roberts Smith, accused of murder and war crimes in Afghanistan. Dur: 27mins File: .mp3

Yet another war believed to be over by Christmas. The Second Boer War was fought between the greatest empire the world had ever seen and a nation of farmers with a population fewer than that of Brighton, England. It took the might of the British Empire three years to subdue these farmers who were known as Boers. Dur: 37mins File: .mp3

Modern historical scholarship has little lenience for hyperbole and any event that appears exaggerated is heavily scrutinized. The Spanish Conquest of Mexico provides ample folklores for historians to examine. One tale depicts renowned conquistador Pedro de Alvarado vaulting across a canal to escape certain doom. An episode since identified as the Salto de Alvarado (Alvarado's Leap). Historians are now in broad agreement that Alvarado's Leap is but a legend. Alvarado's alleged narrow escape occurred during the Castilian's withdrawal known as the Noche Triste (Night of Sorrows) a crucial, indeed pivotal event in the Conquest of Mexico. However, what happened to the rear guard on that rainy dark night on Calzada de Tlacopan (Tacuba Causeway) remains a mystery. Dur: 28mins File: .mp3

In late October 2024, under a Vienna sports field (Ostbahn-XI-Platz) on the Danube in the Simmering district, a site of ancient mass burial was discovered. 129 bodies were discovered (intermixed bones may mean there were up to 150 bodies buried), all male, mostly between 20 and 30 years old, all roughly 1.7 metres tall, and many with wounds consistent with ancient battle. Many skeletons had injuries to their skulls, torsos and pelvises. The radiocarbon dating of the remains put them in the range from AD 80-234. Finds included an iron pugio dagger, spear points, scales from suits of scale armour (lorica squamata) and the cheek piece of a helmet. Near the foot of one skeleton, archaeologists discovered shoe nails that came from distinctive Roman legionary caligae. These works were carried out by the Vienna City Archaeology Department in cooperation with the archaeological service provider Novetus GmbH. Initial research results were presented at the Wien Museum in early April 2025. Dur: 57mins File: .mp3

The French infantry passed by the farm at La Haye Saint and advanced up to the ridge where Picton's 5th Brigade were literally lying in wait. Dutch skirmishers retreated back to their parent regiments in Allied lines. The British troops of Picton's 5th Brigade were stationed 100 yards behind the Dutch who were now trading volleys with the ever-advancing wave of French troops. The Dutch could not sustain the defense and reformed with other regiments. The British troops under Picton then formed up 4 men deep (twice as deep as a standard British line) to match the French who had now also formed into battle lines. The contest between the 2 masses of infantry was hotly contested and the Allied centre began to falter. Dur: 21mins File: .mp3

The Congress of Vienna began in November 1814 and its aim was to provide a plan for a long-term peace within Europe after nearly 23 years of constant conflict and to redraw territorial boundaries so no single nation could become too powerful. Dur: 28 mins File: .mp3