History of Venice Podcast

The Crusade was over. The Crusaders had won. They had pushed Humpty Dumpty off the wall, and now they were the kings of all the broken pieces. If this had been their plan all along, then whoever was responsible for working out what came next had been asleep at the wheel. Once the celebrations of Easter Week 1204 brought an end to the initial rush of looting and vandalism, all semblance of this being a united force with a common goal vanished into the springtime air like dandelion seeds in the breeze.

Email us at [email protected], or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

We're joined by two very special guests this week to discuss what the Fourth Crusade looks like from the perspective of Constantinople. Marco Cappelli from Storia d'Italia podcast and Robin Pierson from the History of Byzantium podcast share their fascinating and well researched perspectives.

You can find Marco's show at: https://italiastoria.com/

You can find Robin's show at: https://thehistoryofbyzantium.com/

Both are highly recommended by much more discerning sources than us, and are well worth your time and support.

You know where to find us, of course. 

Email us at [email protected], or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

April 1204. Constantinople. The story of this ridiculous crusade finally reaches its climax. You probably know how it ends, but for the participants the peril is off the scale as both sides fight for their survival.

Email us at [email protected], or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

The Crusaders’ stunning victory in July 1203 had resolved nothing. They had won, perhaps by default, but it can hardly have been a surprise that the people of Constantinople had never welcomed them. After a few months of phoney peace, by December the war was back on again. As the Crusaders overwintered in Galata, a new, more aggressive opponent emerged in Constantinople. Will the man known as Big Eyebrows save the Empire?

Email us at [email protected], or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

There’s no more room left on the knife-edge that’s balancing everyone’s fortunes on the night of 17th July 1203. Daybreak will bring unexpected clarity, and a victory for one side or the other. But when you find yourself gratefully jumping out of the frying pan, where do you land? Nowhere good, that’s for sure. For all its apparent success, this Crusade has the reverse-Midas touch, rapidly transforming gold into dusty death. And it’s only getting worse. As one war ends, another one soon begins.

Email us at [email protected], or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org