Empires and Ashes

Spellbound Audio
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Empires & Ashes is a history podcast about the moments the world turned. Each episode is a cinematic deep dive into a single pivotal event: an empire's fall, a disaster, a rebellion, a decision made in a room that changed everything after.

  1. Aug 5

    The Battle Of Plassey : The Bribe That Won an Empire - #40

    In 1757 Robert Clive's East India Company force defeated the Nawab of Bengal at Plassey, aided by treachery in the Nawab's ranks. The victory launched British rule over India.

  2. Aug 4

    The Boxer Rebellion : China Rises Against the Foreigners - #39

    From 1899 anti-foreign Boxers besieged Beijing's legations, prompting an eight-nation army to invade China in 1900. The revolt's defeat humiliated the Qing and deepened foreign domination of China.

  3. Aug 3

    Napoleons Retreat From Moscow : The March That Destroyed a Grand Army - #38

    In 1812 Napoleon captured Moscow but found it burning and empty, forcing a winter retreat that annihilated his Grand Army. Of some 600,000 men, barely a fraction survived the cold, hunger and Cossack raids.

  4. Aug 2

    The Battle Of Hattin : How the Crusaders Lost Jerusalem - #37

    In 1187 Saladin lured the thirst-crazed Crusader army onto the Horns of Hattin and destroyed it. The defeat left the Kingdom of Jerusalem defenseless, and the holy city fell soon after.

  5. Aug 1

    The Battle Of Actium : The Sea Fight That Made an Emperor - #36

    In 31 BC Octavian's fleet defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra at Actium, off Greece. The victory ended the Roman civil wars and made Octavian, as Augustus, Rome's first emperor.

  6. Jul 31

    The Fall Of The Songhai Empire : Desert Guns Topple a West African Giant - #35

    In 1591 a Moroccan army armed with firearms crossed the Sahara and shattered the Songhai Empire at Tondibi. The fall of West Africa's largest state ended an age of wealthy Sahelian empires.

  7. Jul 30

    The St Bartholomews Day Massacre : A Wedding That Turned to Slaughter - #34

    In 1572 Catholic mobs and royal troops massacred thousands of French Protestants in Paris and beyond, sparked by a royal wedding. The St Bartholomew's Day Massacre deepened France's brutal Wars of Religion.

  8. Jul 29

    The Battle Of Manzikert : The Defeat That Doomed Byzantium - #33

    In 1071 the Seljuk Turks crushed the Byzantine army and captured Emperor Romanos IV at Manzikert. The loss opened Anatolia to Turkish settlement and set Byzantium on its long decline.

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About

Empires & Ashes is a history podcast about the moments the world turned. Each episode is a cinematic deep dive into a single pivotal event: an empire's fall, a disaster, a rebellion, a decision made in a room that changed everything after.

Information

  • Creator
    Spellbound Audio
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    40
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Spellbound Audio
  • Show Website
    Empires and Ashes