Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchThe Man Who Invented Modern Football
Episode 7397
One man transformed football from a chaotic regional pastime into the most watched sport on earth. His innovations in rules, tactics, and organizatio…
10 hours ago
Basil II: The Paranoid Emperor Who Blinded 15,000 Bulgarians
Episode 7399
Basil II ruled the Byzantine Empire for 49 years and earned the title Bulgar Slayer after ordering the blinding of 15,000 captured Bulgarian soldiers…
10 hours ago
Sargon of Akkad: The Cupbearer Who Built the World's First Empire
Episode 7387
Sargon of Akkad rose from obscurity to conquer all of Mesopotamia and build the first empire in recorded history around 2334 BCE. His origin story re…
10 hours ago
Nebuchadnezzar II: The Tyrant and Architect Who Built Babylon
Episode 7385
Nebuchadnezzar II destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem, deported the Jewish people to Babylon, and built the Hanging Gardens and the Ishtar Gate. He tur…
10 hours ago
Bjorn Borg: The Breaking of the Ice Borg
Episode 7394
Bjorn Borg won 11 Grand Slam titles, dominated tennis for five years, and retired at 26. He walked away from the sport at the peak of his powers and …
10 hours ago
Ray Charles: The Tragic Genius Who Invented Soul Music
Episode 7401
Ray Charles went blind at seven, lost both parents by fifteen, and became addicted to heroin before he turned twenty. He also invented soul music by …
10 hours ago
Nefertiti: The Queen Who May Have Ruled Egypt as King
Episode 7386
Nefertiti was the wife of the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten and the owner of the most famous portrait bust in ancient art. She may also have ruled Egypt …
10 hours ago
Hammurabi: The Micromanager Behind History's Most Famous Law Code
Episode 7398
Hammurabi ruled Babylon for 42 years and left behind the most famous legal code in ancient history. But the Code of Hammurabi was not a set of laws i…
10 hours ago
Seneca: The Billionaire Stoic Behind Nero's Throne
Episode 7392
Seneca preached Stoic simplicity while amassing one of the largest fortunes in the Roman Empire. He tutored Nero, helped govern Rome during the emper…
10 hours ago
Sulla: The Dictator Who Wrote Caesar's Bloody Playbook
Episode 7389
Lucius Cornelius Sulla marched on Rome twice, published proscription lists that legalized the murder of his enemies, and ruled as dictator with absol…
10 hours ago