Emperor Henry III is dead. The realm is now in the hands of his widow, Agnes of Poitou who rules on behalf of the six-year-old king Henry IV. Agnes is no Theophanu and no Adelheid. Not that she is incompetent, she just isn't absolutely brilliant, and absolutely brilliant is the baseline necessary to manage this fragile situation. The relationship between the central imperial power and the magnates has flipped, and instead of all-powerful emperors, the dukes, counts and bishops do what they like....
Sep 16, 2021•43 min•Ep 30•Transcript available on Metacast In 1046 Henry III reached the zenith of his rule. He deposed three unworthy popes and replaced them with serious churchmen who will bring the necessary reforms about. Domestically he is in control of the three Eastern European states, Poland, Bohemia and Hungary and the restless Lotharingians seem settled. How did it come about that by 1056 the chronicler writes that " both the foremost men and the lesser men of the kingdom began more and more to murmur against the emperor. They complained he ha...
Aug 26, 2021•29 min•Ep 29•Transcript available on Metacast In 1046 Henry III finally has time to go to Rome and claim the imperial crown. All he wants is get in, get crowned and get out before the Malaria season. He encounters a problem when he finds out that the current pope Gregory VI has bought the papacy for cold hard cash, a sin that could invalidate his coronation. Henry III gets involved, deposes all three competing popes and inadvertently starts a chain of events that ends in what Norman Cantor calls "the first of the three world revolutions". T...
Aug 19, 2021•35 min•Ep 28•Transcript available on Metacast The main role of a medieval monarch is to bring peace to his subjects. Peace is not so much absence of major international conflict, but protection from feuding lords. Whilst in France central power is far too weak to maintain any semblance of order giving rise to the Peace of God movement, the empire under Henry III can rely on its monarch to fulfil his role. But his rule is not without tension. The dukes of Saxony and Lothringia are moving into opposition to the king and emperor who falls seve...
Aug 12, 2021•26 min•Ep 27•Transcript available on Metacast For the first time in almost 70 years the transition from one king/emperor to the next is smooth. Konrad II was not only one of the most successful medieval rulers, he also managed to live long enough for his son Henry III to grow up to adulthood before taking over. Henry III is outwardly quite different from his father, well educated, deeply immersed in the concepts of sacred kingship and immensely powerful even before he had become king. But at the same time he shares Konrad's steely determina...
Aug 05, 2021•29 min•Ep 26•Transcript available on Metacast In his last years Konrad tries to further strengthen his power, first by fighting the Hungarians, unseating the duke of Carinthia and a second Italian expedition. Al three of these endeavours backfire. The Hungarians win the war, the duke of Carinthia gets unexpected support from Konrad's son Henry III and the Italian campaign ends in a fiasco entirely of Konrad's making. Despite these setbacks Konrad leaves a well ordered kingdom when he finally dies in 1039 after 15 years of rule. His kingdom ...
Jul 29, 2021•27 min•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast The event looming over Imperial politics since around 1000 is the Burgundian succession. King Rudolf III is childless leaving several contenders with varying degrees of blood relations. If Henry II who was a nephew of Rudolf III had outlived the king of Burgundy, thigs would have been easy. But the old codger outlived the sickly emperor. His successor, Konrad II had no real inheritance right to Burgundy, apart from what came from the tips of spears. Follow the epic fight against Odo of Blois ove...
Jul 22, 2021•30 min•Ep 24•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode Emperor Konrad II (1024-1039) consolidates his reign adding a secular leg to his control of the imperial church by placing his son Henry on the ducal throne of Bavaria,. This is the first of many ducal and royal titles he will acquire. This push for centralised control leads to a rebellion, led by the emperor's 16-year old stepson, duke Ernst II of Swabia (1012-1030). Ernst fights bravely but when his vassals put the oath to the emperor above the fidelity they owe the duke, he ha...
Jul 15, 2021•32 min•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast On July 13th, 1024 Emperor Henry II died without an heir. not only that, but his family has so comprehensively died out, there is not a single descendant in the male line left. Fear of unrest and civil war grips the inhabitants of the empire. An election is called for early September, as quickly as such things could be organised in the 11th century. The upper echelons of society debate a long list of candidates before agreeing on a shortlist of just two, both named Konrad, both from the same cla...
Jul 08, 2021•37 min•Ep 22•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode I answer your questions about the Podcast in general, specific topics relating to the Ottonian period, languages spoken and German history more broadly. Thank you so much for a really exciting and diverse set of questions. The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0 . As always: Homepage w...
Jun 24, 2021•40 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast The Ottonian period (919-1024) has been a key reference point in German history ever since. Having only very few and not necessarily very enlightening documents to work from the period became a blank canvas on which historians and the population as a whole projected their own hopes, political beliefs and expectations. In the 19th century the German speaking people who felt humiliated by the defeats against Napoleon and disenfranchised by the political rearranging of their homelands and so ...
Jun 10, 2021•23 min•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast To understand Henry II you have to start at the end. When he died, he had made no succession plan whatsoever. He was convinced that he had moulded the kingdom into a House of god run by pious monks and observant bishops. If the House of God pleased the lord, he would appoint a new successor, and if not, well the good riddance. Though his policy of strengthening and dominating the church could be looked at as a political ploy to expand the royal prerogative, the more likely truth is that it was o...
May 27, 2021•37 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast 1002-1018 AD Once king Henry II has established his rule, he has to face up to a new and increasingly powerful rival. Duke (later King) Boleslav the Brave of Poland has created a large and coherent polity to the east of Germany. When he takes over the counties of Meissen and Lausitz and even Bohemia, war becomes inevitable. Hampered by his own barons being tied to Boleslav by political interest and family ties, Henry II shocks the world by getting into an alliance with the pagan Slavs. In the me...
May 20, 2021•33 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast As Otto III's dead body is brought home by his friends, all his dreams and policies collapse behind him. The Emperor had died aged 22 without an heir and he had no brothers or even uncles left. So who should be king? Will it be Hermann of Swabia, from the eternally loyal Konradiner family, Otto of Worms, the dead emperor's closest relative, Count Ekkehard of Meissen, the mighty warrior, Count Ezzo, the nouveau riche husband of Otto III's sister, or Henry of Bavaria, son of a rebel, grandson of a...
May 13, 2021•33 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast This is part 2 of our rundown of the economic and social situation in Germany around the year 1000. The third and highest social strata were the "Oratores", those who pray, the priests, monks and bishops. We look at how a village priest is educated, why monasteries became so rich (spoiler, it is not about piety alone, money is key) and the role of bishops in the Imperial Church System that made the German emperors the most powerful rulers in Western Europe in the 10th and 11th century. How does ...
May 06, 2021•35 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode we talk about the economy, society, infrastructure and art at the turn of the first millennium. We will look at changes in climate, agriculture, monetary system and warfare. We will take a look at towns and cities, take a deeper dive into Cologne and Magdeburg, muse about the trade in Eunuchs and medieval bathing habits. It is the 10th century when society splits into those who pray (Oratores), those who fight (Bellatores) and those who do all the useful stuff (Laboratores). We d...
Apr 29, 2021•27 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast After part one of Otto III's "Restoration of the Empire of the Romans" had been a bloody affair, he now embarks on a strenuous display of religious devotion. That includes a trip to Gniezno, the grave of his friend and mentor Saint Adalbert, a trip that has huge consequences for the development of Poland as an independent nation. His excessive ascetism, long periods of prayer and devotion may look incomprehensible to us today, but are they part of an overall concept of a new "Empire of the Roman...
Apr 22, 2021•35 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast Otto III is one of the most controversial emperor in German medieval history. Was he just an uncontrollable teenager with dramatic mood swings? Or did he plan the Restoration of the Empire of the Romans as his propaganda stated? Was he cruel man who executed and mutilated his opponents or was he a deeply spiritual man torn between his piety and the demands of the office? The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Joha...
Apr 15, 2021•32 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast Having rescued the reign and possibly life of 4-year-old king Otto III his mother, the byzantine princess Theophanu and later his grandmother Adelheid continue Ottonian policies. This time gives birth to the election of the French dynasty that will rule until 1789 (1830), a length of reign only surpassed by the emperors of Japan. It also witnesses the emergence of Poland as a sovereign nation under the pope. The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel B...
Apr 02, 2021•33 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast When 4-year-old king Otto III is crowned king riders bang on the door of Aachen Cathedral with news that his father, Otto II had died 16 days earlier. Immediately the archenemy of the family, Henry the Quarrelsome is released from prison where he was held for treason and is made guardian of the child. Otto III's chance of survival is bleak and his only hope is his mother, the Byzantine princes Theophanu who musters an odd assembly of ladies and geeks to rescue her son... The music for the show i...
Mar 25, 2021•26 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast Having suppressed the customary early reign rebellion, Otto II makes some poor appointments that result in war with France and estrangement from his mother. Once that has been patched up, he embarks on his major project, incorporating the south of Italy into the empire and thereby bottling up the popes..... The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau...
Mar 18, 2021•33 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast When Otto II succeeds his father Otto the Great he inherits a strange construct of interwoven rights, relationships and privileges. He might rely on the church's resources to a degree but to succeed he needs military skill, charisma, proof of the grace of god and luck. With his father being the luckiest man in German history is there any of that elusive substance left for his son... The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as B...
Mar 11, 2021•32 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Otto's final desire is to be recognised as a fellow emperor by the Basileus in Constantinople. When the Byzantines refuse him the purple-born princess Anna he wages war. The new emperor, John Tzimiskis comes up with a better solution and sends across the most glamorous figure of German medieval history - Theophanu Skleraina... The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by&...
Mar 04, 2021•23 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast 955-963 AD After the battle on the Lechfeld Otto has reached the zenith of his career. All he lacks is the formal recognition of his imperial position within the ancient realm of Charlemagne. For that he has to travel to the malaria-infested swamp that is 10th century Rome where a 23 year old promiscuous and duplicitous pope awaits him... The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and ...
Feb 25, 2021•31 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast The devastation of the civil war lures in the largest Hungarian army anyone had ever seen anywhere. Enticed by the disinherited sons of former Bavarian dukes, the mighty host makes for Augsburg, a city whose walls are as weak as their defender is steadfast. This time they are here to conquer not just to plunder. Otto has to run hell for leather south gathering an army from wherever he can get his hands on soldiers to face the most amazing military of the times on a battlefield of their choosing....
Feb 18, 2021•30 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Adelheid's rescue creates tension not only in the family of king Otto but across the realm. Younger members of the powerful families feel cheated out of the gains of the Italian campaign and worry about their prospects. And Otto makes again one of these mistakes he is so adept at, resulting in much bloodshed and pain... The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by M...
Feb 11, 2021•29 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast After the civil war with his brother Henry Otto gets to reorganise the kingdom and focuses on foreign policy. There is conflict on all borders, with the Slavs, the Bohemians, the Hungarians, and the French. Great opportunities for the fine sports of pointless sieges, burning of crops as well massacring peasants. But what do you say to a magnate who offers to swallow seven Saxon lances in one go? The most interesting story plays out in Italy where we find a beautiful young heiress with the key to...
Feb 04, 2021•24 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast His brother and his biggest vassals are rebelling, the kingdom remains under threat from Hungarians and Slavs - and now the king of France comes in on the side of the opposition. Only a series of very fortunate events can rescue king Otto, or a man of short stature, fierce temper, extraordinary bravery and a dislike of apples and women? The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and ar...
Jan 28, 2021•20 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Henry the Fowler ended the tradition of splitting the kingdom amongst the male heirs. So far, so wise. But, and there is always a but, what he did not work out was what to do with the spares. And there were quite a few spares about, three in total. How will Henry's designated heir, Otto I manage? The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau &nb...
Jan 22, 2021•26 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast The year is 919 AD and things are not going well. The mighty empire of Charlemagne has splintered into a multitude of puny kingdoms. Its feeble rulers are being pushed around by their formidable barons. The frontiers are breached. In the north the Vikings and Danes are ransacking towns and villages along the coasts and even deep inland. In the east the Slavs are burning Hamburg. And in the south the most terrifying of them all, the Magyars, a steppe tribe like the Huns and the Mongols, are marau...
Jan 16, 2021•33 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast 
