34 episodes
The Fall of Rome Podcast Wondery
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- History
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4.8 • 2.1K Ratings
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Barbarians, political breakdown, economic collapse, mass migration, pillaging and plunder. The fall of the Roman Empire has been studied for years, but genetics, climate science, forensic science, network models, and globalization studies have reshaped our understanding of one of the most important events in human history. PhD historian and specialist Patrick Wyman brings the cutting edge of history to listeners in plain, relatable English.
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Introduction
Barbarians, political breakdown, economic collapse, mass migration, pillaging and plunder. In the introduction to this series, PhD historian Patrick Wyman takes you through the broad outlines of the fall of the Roman Empire, one of the most important events in history.
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The Barbarian World
We explore the barbarian world beyond the frontiers, focusing on the fearsome Goths who would one day leave an emperor dead on the battlefield, sack Rome itself, and found a kingdom of their own inside the empire's borders. The barbarian world was tightly tied to Rome, and those connections are what we'll investigate today, through the eyes of a Goth named Wulfila.
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The Goths and the Beginning of Rome's End
In the third episode of The Fall of Rome, we explore the Goths' migration into the Roman Empire and their desperate war for survival against the forces of the Empire. This conflict culminated in the Battle of Adrianople, the worst defeat of a Roman army in more than 350 years. How did a rag-tag group of migrants defeat the cream of the army and leave an emperor dead on the battlefield?
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The Gothic Sack of Rome
In 395, the barbarian Goths rebelled against the Romans and fought a campaign that culminated in the sack of Rome in 410. But were the Goths really barbarous foreigners, or are they better understood as a Roman army seeking a position within the Empire?
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Just How Screwed Up Was the Later Roman Empire?
One of the fundamental questions about the later Roman Empire is just what a mess it really was. Did the barbarians topple a fundamentally healthy, functional state? Or were they merely the straw that broke the camel's back of a diseased, rotten, empire that could no longer hold itself together? In this episode, we discuss just how things had changed between the peak of the Roman Empire in the second century and the beginning of the end in the fourth.
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The Catastrophic Fall Of Roman Britain
In 350, Britain was a thoroughly integrated province of the Roman Empire, full of prosperous, Latin-speaking cities, luxurious villas, and all the other trappings of Roman life. By 500, the cities were gone, the economy had collapsed, and the island was split among an innumerable number of petty kingdoms. What happened? How did everything go so wrong?
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Customer Reviews
History Isn't Over
This insightful and nuanced look at the end of the empire resonates with headlines of today.
Interesting and enjoyable
Enriches my understanding of history and how it is done. In my freshman year of high school studied the Merovingians. This podcast adds depth to my meager understanding of the period.
Production quality not up to par
History buffs looking for an excruciatingly detailed telling of the Roman Empire may be satisfied with this show. Lots of research was done for sure. Unfortunately, the quality of the actual show is lacking when compared to presentations made by contemporaries. Noizer has a fantastic podcast about Napoleon. The narration is professionally recorded with a talented performer. Music and sound effects are used to bolster the information and the occasional expert interview is woven in for additional context and balance.
This podcast pales in comparison. It sounds like a graduate student reading from their notes preparing for a doctorate thesis presentation. Stiff readings that are poorly recorded. You can hear the script. The vocal quality is sibilant and thin. I can here the reflections of the room it was recorded in. Obviously not a professional recording studio.
Podcasts have really matured in the last 10 years. Unfortunately this one sounds like it was made 11 years ago.