Medieval man loved their saints. Remember the Anglo Saxons? Saints popping up all over the place. The Martyrdom of Thomas Beckett I suppose is reasonable, but cult of Simon de Montfort and bit more odd. Edward II, unpopular though he is, also had a period of saintliness. In this episode, Hannah looks at the afterlife of Thomas of Lancaster - how a pretty miserable bloke got a following that saw him as a saint. Hannah looks at the Brut, and how the chronicler subtly positions Lancaster's story to support his new status.

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Bannockburn was a landmark defeat for the English, which signalled a long term change to the strategy Edward I had started. Zack talks about the events that led up to the battle, how the battle itself unfolded, and how England reacted to defeat. 

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Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the great names of the Middle Ages. Her life spanned almost all of the Angevin Empire, and her court at Poitiers became famous as the centre of courtly love. Much of her life was spent in conflict with her two husbands, but towards the end of her life she achieved the political influence she had earlier craved as the trusted supporter of her sons.

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Ælfthryth was a controversial figure. Wife of King Edgar, mother of Æthelred the Unready - and possibly murderer of her step son, Edward? Melisende of Outremer looks at the life of a remarkable person. 

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