Continue your study of the Fourth Lateran Council with this examination of the "canons of persecution." Whereas the canons you studied earlier primarily affected Christians, the canons in this episode were directed specifically at non-Christians (particularly Muslims and Jews). After exploring these persecution canons, consider the background for the Crusades.

As you may recall, the Fourth Lateran Council attempted to curb the formation of new monastic orders, yet the Church soon after granted an exception for the Franciscans and the Dominicans. Dive into the background of these orders, meet St. Francis of Assisi, and see how his life inspired the creation of a new religious order.

The rise of Genghis Khan is an amazing, unbelievable story. How did a low-ranking man from the Mongolian steppes rise up to be one of the greatest military leaders the world has ever seen? In this episode, Professor Armstrong surveys the dazzling rise of Genghis Khan, outlines his military strategy, and surveys his conquests across Asia.

Religious tracts and guides provide a crucial window into 13th-century spirituality and behavior. Beyond religion, however, the Norse and Icelandic sagas offer great insight into the myths, events, and stories of a pagan, pre-Christian past, while the Arthurian legend grew in popularity throughout the medieval world. Review this amazing (and sometimes amazingly weird) literature.

Too often, western history books portray the Mongols as bloodthirsty murderers and destroyers hellbent on destroying civilization, but the true story of Mongol society is much different. As Marco Polo relayed after a visit to Kublai Khan, the Mongols did much to stabilize the societies they conquered. Explore the dual identity of the Mongols.

History buffs likely know that the Magna Carta was drafted in 1215, and that it helped establish English law as we know it. But what was actually in this document? And why was it created in the first place? Here, you'll discover the surprisingly narrowly focused origins of a short-lived document that seemed, at the time, like a minor footnote in history.

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading. While in prison awaiting a brutal execution, Boethius produced arguably the most famous work of early medieval philosophy and literature, the celebrated Consolation of Philosophy. In alternating sections of prose and poetry, Boethius describes the circumstances of his rapid fall from the upper echelons of society and power. In a conversation with lady Philosophy,...

Episode Two charts efforts to give the earth a shape and a place. From flat earth legends to Galileo’s telescope, this episode tracks major changes in our scientific understanding.

We explore the earliest origins of our relationship with the skies, from our earliest ancestors, to the birth of science.

"Swimming is a long thread that connects the Olympic heroes of today with the real and mythic ones of the past across more than ten millennia--a recorded history that begins in a cave in the Egyptian desert and sweeps across athletes and poets, statesmenand emperors, humans and gods; across the whole human experience, the entire human story. Splash! weaves a 10,000-year-old tale that begins in a bone-dry cave in the remote southwest corner of Egypt,...