The Medieval Podcast

The Medieval Podcast

Author: Danièle Cybulskie Language: English Episodes: 100
Step back in time without the dust and difficulty of old archives. The Medieval Podcast, hosted by Danièle Cybulskie, is your accessible gateway to a thousand years of human experience. This isn't a dry recitation of dates and battles, but a vibrant exploration of how people lived, thought, and created. Each week, Danièle brings her genuine curiosity and conversational style to interviews with leading scholars, uncovering the fascinating details that textbooks often miss. You'll find yourself immersed in discussions that might cover the economic significance of pigs, the beauty and complexity of Persian poetry, or the tumultuous drama of the Plantagenet dynasty. The scope is deliberately broad, touching on history, arts, literature, and the intricacies of daily culture and society, all through the medieval lens. Listening to this podcast feels like having a friendly chat with a knowledgeable guide who is just as excited to learn as you are. It’s designed for anyone with a spark of interest, whether you're a seasoned enthusiast or just wondering what daily life was really like between the fall of Rome and the Renaissance. The conversations are deep yet digestible, always aiming to connect the medieval world to our own in unexpected ways. Prepare to have your assumptions challenged and your curiosity ignited as Danièle and her guests illuminate the shadows of the past, one compelling story at a time.
Episodes
Medieval Eastern Europe with Florin Curta [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:05
If you browse the shelves of your local bookstore, it may seem like Eastern Europe basically didn’t exist until the Soviet Union. Fortunately, Medieval Studies is slowly widening the lens to give us a bigger and better p…
Early English Queens with Matthew Firth [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:09
Most of us could probably come up with a few names of the kings who ruled in England in the centuries before the Norman Conquest, but the queens? Maybe not. We know they existed, but it can be hard to figure out much els…
Fixing the Liturgy with CJ Jones [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:18
There’s a pretty common myth that medieval women had no agency in their lives; that they were quiet and subservient, and accepted the status quo without thinking too hard about it. The reality, of course, was much differ…
2024: The Medieval Year in Review [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:18
2024 has been another wild ride in politics and medieval studies. This week, continuing tradition, Danièle speaks with Peter Konieczny from Medievalists.net about what’s been happening in the world and in the field this…
In Defense of Women with Margaret L. King [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:51
One of the favourite pastimes of certain thinkers throughout history has been to demonstrate the supposed inferiority of women, something both modern people and people of the past have resisted with spicy arguments of th…
Best Medieval Books of 2024 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:21
Medieval Studies has no shortage of amazing books coming out each year, but which ones are the best of the best? This week, Danièle continues the annual tradition of listing her top five book recommendations of 2024 alon…
The House of Condulmer with Alan Stahl [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:30
There’s a general impression of the Middle Ages that wherever you started out in life is where you ended up. But with a few business smarts, the right connections, and a willingness to play fast and loose with ethics, so…
A Holy Blueprint with Karl Kinsella [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:29
One of the clearest and most enduring legacies of the Middle Ages is the beautiful buildings left behind. Many of these buildings were devoted to God, using blueprints that no longer exist. But one of the most famous – a…
Ibn Sina and Biruni with S. Frederick Starr [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:44
Experimenting, translating, and philosophizing about physics and metaphysics, biology and geology, two great thinkers from Central Asia stand out both for their achievements, and their completely opposite points of view.…
The Otherworld with Lisa Bitel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:27
A place of supernatural encounters both incredibly good and spectacularly bad, the Otherworld featured in stories and songs throughout the Middle Ages, especially on the storied isle of Ireland. This week, Danièle speaks…