The British History Podcast

480 – All Gas, No Brakes

on August 6, 2025August 6, 2025 By Jamie

Alright, so when we left off Edgar (the eldest living son of Malcolm Canmore) had claimed the throne of Scotland. But, in classic medieval style, the way that Edgar had gone about that was anything but simple. Edgar had taken the throne from his Uncle, King Donald III, and to pull that off Edgar had the help of another uncle Edgar the AEtheling – who happened to be the guy he was named after – as well as King Rufus of England… and with their support, King Donald III was forced into exile.

479 – Be Like Water

on July 18, 2025August 7, 2025 By Jamie

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For years, Normandy had been wracked with internal conflict, war, and political unrest. The Duchy had nearly been the end of Duke Robert countless times… and if there was a single defining characteristic of Normandy under Robert, it would be “chaos.”

478 – A Fire Sale for the Faithful

on June 23, 2025June 23, 2025 By Jamie

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It’s September of 1096, and Duke Robert was setting out on Crusade, intent on taking the main pilgrim road to Rome and Norman Italy. Joining him were his retainers, soldiers, and supporters… including high ranked figures like Bishop Odo of Bayeux, Count Robert of Flanders, and Stephen of Aumale (who was the forgettable guy that de Mowbray had tried to install on the throne of England).

476 – The Crackdown

on May 20, 2025May 20, 2025 By Jamie

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In 1096, Robert de Mowbray, the former Earl of Northumbria, was living in Windsor. And he better get comfy, because his majesty seemed quite happy to keep him there as a permanent resident.

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475 – The Fall of Mowbray

on May 5, 2025May 6, 2025 By Jamie

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Night fell… and gradually, everything within Bamburgh and the Malvoisin went quiet. Sure, there were the occasional patrols, and the occasional muffled voice as two people shared a moment, or simply tried to keep themselves awake while on watch… but for the most part, there was no sound except for that of the waves lapping the shore.

474 – Malvoisin, the Evil Neighbor

on April 25, 2025April 25, 2025 By Jamie

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Rufus was marching North to directly challenge de Mowbray and anyone foolish enough to follow him. And of course he was. There was only one response this King was ever going to have to de Mowbray’s instigation. War.

473 – Stage Management

on April 15, 2025May 3, 2025 By Jamie 1 Comment

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So, when we left off, Anselm finally had his Pallium, and Rufus got… well… Rufus got all the independence and freedom from Church interference that he could have hoped for. Even better, his Bishops were on the same page as him and were supporting the King’s independence from Rome.

472 – Radicals

on March 31, 2025March 31, 2025 By Jamie

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We have spent a lot of time with the situation between Anselm and Rufus, and all their messy interpersonal drama, but we haven’t really discussed the true elephant in the room.

Radicalism.

471 – How To Lose Friends and Irritate People

on March 21, 2025March 21, 2025 By Jamie

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It was January of 1095 and Rufus was still at war with his eldest brother, Duke Robert. A war that could have been avoided if the Red King had simply kept his word… or even just apologized.

But he wasn’t interested in doing either of those things, so people were dying in Normandy.

470 – Tough Treaty

on March 14, 2025March 14, 2025 By Jamie

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As I’ve mentioned a few times… we are discussing one of those periods of history where everything was kind of happening all at once. This presents a challenge when trying to create a clear narrative that you can follow, while also staying true to the order of events.

And that’s assuming there is a clear order of events. This period of history is also poorly recorded and recreating the correct timeline is really difficult in some cases.