Autocrat- A Roman History Podcast

Vince and Cassie
  • 4.0 (4)
  • HISTORY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Autocrat- A Roman History Podcast

A relaxed journey through Roman history and mythology, hopefully with plenty of tangents, sidebars and interesting distractions along the way. Our goal- even if it ends up being unrealised- is to journey from the Theogony all the way to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and beyond. This show is just for fun, and we hope you have fun with it too!

  1. 55- Odysseus and Friends

    14 HR. AGO

    55- Odysseus and Friends

    In the quiet before the storm of the Trojan War and its immediate causes, we introduce two major characters today. The first is Odysseus, great-grandson of Hermes and creator of oaths that blow up in his face. The second is Achilles- descendant of Zeus and an ancient Greek example of play dress-up to run away from your problems. Sources for this episode: Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Hyginus (1872), Fabulae. Edited by M. Schmidt. Jenae: Hermann Dufft. Statius (1928), Statius. Volume II: Thebiad V- XII and Achilleid. London and New York: William Heinemann, Ltd. and G. P. Putnam's Sons.

    14 min
  2. 54- The House of Tantalus (See Also Child Cannibalism)

    DEC 1

    54- The House of Tantalus (See Also Child Cannibalism)

    Content warning: the title should tell you everything you need to know here. The descendants of Tantalus are violent, and they don't mess about. Tantalus is usually known for being the originator of the word tantalising. But how bad can his story really be? In this episode, Vince tells a progressively more horrified Cassie about the messed-up lives of his descendants- including Agamemnon and Menelaus... Sources for this episode: Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Oldfather, C. H. (1993), Diodorus of Sicily: the Library of History. In Twelve Volumes. Volume III: Books IV.59- VIII. London and Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Ovid (1955), Metamorphoses. Translated by M. M. Innes. London: Penguin Books. Smith; W. (ed.) (1867), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. In Three Volumes (Vol. 1-3.). Boston: Little, Brown, And Company. Tzetzes, J. (last edited 2018), Chiliades or Book of Histories. Translated by A. Untila, G. Berkowitz, K. Ramiotis and V. Dogani. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Tantalus (son of Thyestes) (online) (Accessed 19/11/2024).

    16 min
  3. 53- Helen: The Origins

    NOV 24

    53- Helen: The Origins

    Meet the most beautiful woman in the world- who may have hatched from an egg. She's got suitors lining up to marry her which poses a problem for her stepfather Tyndareus. Maybe Odysseus will have a short term solution that will only cause problems later? Sources for this episode: Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Graves, R. (1981), Greek Myths: Illustrated Edition. London: Cassell Ltd. Pausanias (1886), Pausanias Description of Greece. In Six Volumes. Volume II: Books VII to X. Translated by A. R. Shilleto. London: George Bell and Sons. Plutarch (1938), Plutarch's Lives. Dryden's Edition, Revised, with an Introduction, by Arthur Hugh Clough. In Three Volumes (Volume I). Everyman's Library 407. London and New York: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd. and E. P. Dutton & Co. Inc. Procopius (2016), The Secret History. Translated by G. A. Williamson. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Leda and the Swan (online) (Accessed 17/11/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Penelope (online) (Accessed 17/11/2024).

    11 min
  4. 52- Aeneas: The Origins

    NOV 17

    52- Aeneas: The Origins

    Prince Aeneas of Troy has a bit of an unusual parentage- he's the son of minor prince Anchises by Human Woman. Who is definitely human. And not Aphrodite. Sources for this episode: Evelyn-White, H. G. (1943), Hesiod: The Homeric Hymns and Homerica. London: William Heinemann Ltd. Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Graves, R. (1981), Greek Myths: Illustrated Edition. London: Cassell Ltd. Guerber, H. A. (1929), The Myths of Greece & Rome: Their Stories Signification and Origin. London: George G. Harrap & Company Ltd. Ovid (1955), Metamorphoses. Translated by M. M. Innes. London: Penguin Books. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Tithonus (online) (Accessed 16/11/2024).

    17 min
  5. 51- Paris: The Origins

    NOV 10

    51- Paris: The Origins

    The secondborn son of Priam and Hecabe was already making a big splash before he was born- and well before he swooped on a woman called Helen. There's not many of us who get a prophecy about our destructive legacy- or who get confused with a major European city... Sources for this episode: Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Graves, R. (1981), Greek Myths: Illustrated Edition. London: Cassell Ltd. Ovid (1914), Heroides and Amores. Translated by G. Showerman. London and New York: William Heinemann and The Macmillan Co. Smith; W. (ed.) (1867), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. In Three Volumes (Vol. 1-3.). Boston: Little, Brown, And Company. Wilkinson, P., Carroll, G., Faulkner, M., Field, J. F., Haywood, J., Kerrigan, M., Philip, N., Pumphrey, N. and Tocino-Smith, J. (2018), The Mythology Book. London: Dorling Kindersley Limited. Author unknown, Merriam Webster (date unknown), What is a 'Firebrand?' (online) (Accessed 10/11/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Heroides (online) (Accessed 10/11/2024).

    10 min
  6. 50- Cassandra: The Origins

    NOV 3

    50- Cassandra: The Origins

    It's the start of Chapter II, so we're off to the Trojan War! Except... Not just yet. We need some background first. You might have heard of our subject today- she shares a name with one of the co-hosts... Sources for this episode: Euripides (1981), Medea and Other Plays. Translated by P. Vellacott. London: The Penguin Classics. Frazer, J. G. (1921), Apollodorus: The Library (Volume II). London: William Heinemann. Graves, R. (1981), Greek Myths: Illustrated Edition. London: Cassell Ltd. Callimachus and Lycophron (1961). Translated by A. W. Meir. London and New York: William Heinemann and G. P. Putnam's Sons. Ovid (1955), Metamorphoses. Translated by M. M. Innes. London: Penguin Books. Norwich, J. J. (2003), Byzantium: The Decline and Fall. London: The Folio Society. Any sources and future debate about Aesacus to be put here.

    13 min
  7. Bonus VII- Six Spooky Stories (Halloween Special)

    OCT 31 · BONUS

    Bonus VII- Six Spooky Stories (Halloween Special)

    All Hallows' Eve is upon us... and that means spooky stories! Join us for two longer-form Greco-Roman stories and four tales from around the world. Plus, the Autocrat palace may or may not be haunted. So there's that. Sources for this episode (to be updated tomorrow): Marks, A. and Tingay, G. (date unknown), Romans. London: Usborne Publishing. Pliny (1969), The Letters of the Younger Pliny. Translated by B. Radice. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd. Steel, R. W. , Gardiner, R. K. A. , McMaster, D. N. , Dickson, K. B. , Nicol, D. S. H. W. , Clarke, J. I. , Kröner, A. , Middleton, J. F. M. , Mabogunje, A. L. and Smedley, A., Encyclopedia Britannica (2024), Africa (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Tacitus (1983), The Annals of Imperial Rome. Translated by M. Grant. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Africa (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Claudius (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Curtius Rufus (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Hadrumetum (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) List of consuls (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Lucius Vitellius (consul 34) (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown) Quintus Curtius Rufus (online) (Accessed 28/10/2024).

    26 min
  8. Bonus VI- In Other News: Chinese Myths (feat. The History of China)

    OCT 27 · BONUS

    Bonus VI- In Other News: Chinese Myths (feat. The History of China)

    Back in episode 15, we discussed the story of Deucalion and Pyrrha in their experience of the great flood sent by Zeus to destroy humanity. However, there are other flood myths we didn't get to cover because of our focus. So, we welcomed Chris Stewart from the History of China to go through Chinese creation stories, flood myths, scientific controversy, and more! Sources for this episode: Allan, S. (2017), The Jishi outburst flood of 1920 BCE and the great flood legend in ancient China: preliminary reflections. Journal of Chinese humanities 3.1: 23-34. Bergman, J. (2003), Do Creation and Flood Myths Found World Wide Have a Common Origin? The Proceedings of the International Conference on Creationism 5: 517-528. Wilkinson, P., Carroll, G., Faulkner, M., Field, J. F., Haywood, J., Kerrigan, M., Philip, N., Pumphrey, N. and Tocino-Smith, J. (2018), The Mythology Book. London: Dorling Kindersley Limited. Wu, Q., Zhao, Z., Liu, L., Granger, D. E., Wang, H., Cohen, D. J., Wu, X., Ye, M., Bar-Josef, O., Lu, B., Zhang, J., Zhang, P., Yuan, D., Qi, W., Cai, L. and Bai, S. (2016), Outburst flood at 1920 BCE supports historicity of China's Great Flood and the Xia dynasty. Science 353(6299), 579-582. Author unknown (2010), Holy Bible: International Children's Bible (New Century Version). Milton Keynes: Authentic Media Limited.

    25 min
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A relaxed journey through Roman history and mythology, hopefully with plenty of tangents, sidebars and interesting distractions along the way. Our goal- even if it ends up being unrealised- is to journey from the Theogony all the way to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and beyond. This show is just for fun, and we hope you have fun with it too!

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