The Dark Ages Podcast

Beyond the River

c. 448 CE
In the spring, a diplomatic mission set out from Constantinople for discussions with Atilla the Hun. One of the men on the trip later wrote out his experience in one of the most detailed accounts of life among the Huns. This episode condenses the writing of Priscus of Panion, diplomat and historian. 
 
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Sound effects from freesound.com and zapsplat.com

The Hun and the Saint

The Huns, Part IV
450-453 CE
Attila unleashed his fury on the Western empire in two back to back campaigns. The first culminated in the Battle of the Catalaunian Fields. The second ended with the famous meeting between Attila the Hun and Pope Leo I.
Map of Attila's Invasion of Italy
Sources
War dominates the scene on today's episode, as it does on today's headlines. The inevitable consequence of war is the displacement of those caught in its path. If you can, please donate to one of the organizations working to help Ukrainian refugees, and people all around the world who are victimized by the violence of the powerful and the greedy. Links to a few of them are below. Thank you.
The International Rescue Committee
Global Giving
Doctors Without Borders
Music
"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

The Apostle of Noricum

c. 450 to c. 482 CE
 
Saint Severinus was a holy man who was active in Noricum Ripensis, in modern Austria and Bavaria. His life coincided with the end of Roman rule in the west, and the biography that was written by his disciple Eugippius includes several insights into the world as the ancient social structures changed and were replaced by new anxieties and dangers. In this episode we'll talk about those changes and the new role religion was taking on in the formerly Roman West.
Article on the Noricum Limes - with Map

More Serpent than Dove

The Vandals Part III
439 to 455 CE
“Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be therefore as wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Matthew, 10:16
Gaiseric weathers Roman attempts to recover the African provinces, and begins to set his house in order. Marriage deals are made and broken, and an ancient version of gunboat diplomacy is used by the new king. Meanwhile, jealousy and paranoia lead to big changes in the Roman government, and the consequences are severe. The Vandals play their most famous role in Roman history in this episode.
 
Sources
 
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
 
Sound effects from freesound.com and zapsplat.com

Unmitigated Gaul

418 to 456 CE
A senator by the name of Eparchius Avitus is dragooned into filling the imperial shoes left behind by the well-aimed brick that took out Petronius Maximus. His life gives a framework for discussing the place of southern Gaul within the Roman empire, and how the Visigoths were settling in.
 
The full text of Sidonius' letter describing Theodoric.
 
Sources
 
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
 

Speaking Frankly

The Franks, Part I
280 to 480 CE
We welcome the Franks onto the stage of Europe, and look at their origins, early history, ferocious reputation, and the way modern politics work their way into the telling of history.
Fittings from the Sword and Scabbard found in Childeric's tomb.
Childeric's Ring at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France
Childeric's Bees
Sword and Scabbard Decoration from Childeric's Treasure
Sources
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
 

The Phantom Kingdom

456 to 464 CEEmperor Majorian and his Right-Hand man Ricimer attempt to pull the empire back from the brink after the departure of Avitus.  But there's a snake in the grass, a fly in the ointment, and a bad apple in the barrel.  It all leads to the creation of a new entity called the Kingdom of Soissons.  Or does it?
Map of Majorian's Campaigns
Sources
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
 
Sound effects from freesound.com and zapsplat.com

All or Nothing: The Battle of Cape Bon

461 to 468 CE
The East and West combine forces in one great push to take Africa backs from the Vandals and make everything all better.
Sources
Title Music:"The Britons" and "The Vikings" by Kevin MacLeod at Free Music ArchiveLicensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
 
Sound effects from freesound.com

King Euric

466 to around 473
The Visigoths break out, under the leadership of their new and aggressive King Euric. Inside the empire, another emperor falls to Ricimer's scheming.
An appropriate map for this episode is here.
Sources are here
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod at Free Music ArchiveLicensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Gepids East Goths and Huns, Oh My

453 CE to 460 CE
Out of the wreckage of Attila's empire, new peoples emerge. New actors inject new elements into the political game of the late Roman empire
British Museum entry for the Gepids, with some artefacts
History Files Article and Regnal List of the Gepids
Scirian Earring found at Bakod Puszta
 
Sources
Title Music:"The Britons" by Kevin MacLeod at Free Music ArchiveLicensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/