wnsdpod

Ep 233 - Aura Farming on the Cross

patrons, this is your ad-free episode of the week. we answer questions from Arc Arcturus and Horatio Hex

folks, we got a bit of a split episode today. we start with talking about the state of the world in the cold open before moving to a discussion about periodization and efforts to move away from western conceptions and why it's really hard to make broad, accurate periods sometimes. then, we turn to the world of modern Christianity and talk about all the baffling and insane things peop...

Ep 232 - August Mailbag

patrons, here is your ad-free regular episode for this week, we answered a few of your questions

folks, in our neverending struggle to defeat the overflowing mailbag of patron questions, we've started doing one mail episode a month and here we are for August. this time we answer questions about which Simpson family member corresponds to the Medieval humors, the tradition of smoking and curing meats, Medieval automatons, everyone's favorite biblical glup shitto Simon Magus, and what Medi...

Bonus Ep 91 - The Decameron 6: Less Tragedy, More Farce

patrons, we are back with your second bonus episode for July and the sixth in our book club series on Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron.

folks, we're back for Day 5 where Boccaccio has mostly dropped the tragedy to focus mainly on the farce, so that means less reflection on the existential horror of death and more distracting ourselves from it with bawdy stories. we talk about a Medieval shotgun wedding, Medieval TGIF, Medieval Gift of the Magi, and much more!

Ep 231 - Medieval BDSM

patrons, here is your ad free regular episode, we answered questions from Pearl River Flow and Dog God.

NSFW, just saying.

folks, some people might try to tell you that humans only started engaging in BDSM in the 1960s, like it's a very recent invention. but, we're here to tell you that's wrong as people have been engaging in such practices since before the advent of writing! so we go deep on the subject, talking about some ancient BDSM practices before talking about how it was do...

Ep 230 - Patreon Ep Unlocked: The Decameron 1

patrons, we had to unlock this one because, well, you'll hear Luke's voice if you listen to the intro and know why we couldn't record a new one.

the Book Club series is back and we're here to introduce you to the Italian peninsula in 1348 or, as they might have called it: the end of the fucking world. the Black Death hit the densely-populated boot like a nuke, killing millions in just a few months. why are we talking about something so depressing and that we've already covered extensive...

Bonus Ep 90 - Andor 2.3: Bad Luck, Ghorman

patrons, here is your first bonus episode for July 2025 and your third in our series on Andor season 2.

folks, it's time for the penultimate arc of Andor and, by the end, the rebellion will have been announced, the Galactic Civil War will have begun, and Mon Mothma will be a real revolutionary. but that means we gotta move a lot of pieces into place as we see the Empire's final solution on Ghorman, carried out with the help of pliant news media, of course, the estrangement of Luthen and...

Ep 229 - Oops, All Cold Open

patrons, here is your ad-free weekly episode. we didn't answer any questions this week for reasons that will become apparent. don't forget to use code URBAN at checkout to get 20% off our series on the First Crusade with the American Prestige boys, it's just $10 at welcometothecrusades.com.

folks, we kinda got carried away talking about current events and, whoops, wouldn't you know it, we just decided to do a whole...

Ep 228 - Early Medieval Bohemia

patrons, here is your ad-free episode for the week, we answer questions from Arc Arcturus and Alsahiir in this one.

also: don't forget to check out our limited series on the First Crusade with the American Prestige boys. you can get all 11 episodes at welcometothecrusades.com for just $10 but patrons get an additional 20% off using code URBAN at checkout

folk...

Ep 227 - July Mailbag

patrons, here is your ad-free regular episode for the week.

folks, we're back with more patron questions, this time for the month of July. we talk everything from which weapon we'd want in a Medieval battle, Hanseatic League piracy, Medieval Futurism, the connections between Lollards and Hussites, throat singing, and more!

also, quick reminder: patrons use code URBAN at checkout at welcometothecr...

Bonus Ep 89 - The Decameron 5: Everybody Hates Venice

patrons, here is your second bonus episode for June 2025 and the 5th installment in our book club series on Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron. we're back with our 10 Florentines hiding away from the Black Death in a villa in 1348 but the stories today are decidedly different in tone and substance. though there is still horniness and anticlerical sentiment, the stories are all tragedies, some of them quite grisly in nature. and, if the introduction is any indication, it seems that Bo...

Ep 226 - June Mailbag

patrons, here is your ad-free regular episode for the week. it's a mailbag so we answered a bunch of your questions!

folks, we're back in our ongoing quest to catch up on Patron questions and so we've got 10 more to discuss for the month of June. we talk about what Medieval people smelled like, bi kings, Medieval footwear, gambling, animal welfare, and the King Asleep in the Mountain trope! it's so much fun, check it out!

Quick Note on the First Crusade Series + Discount Code

hey, patrons, there appeared to be a little confusion, so I wanted to bring this to your attention in case you didn't catch my short blurb before episode 224. as you're no doubt aware, Eleanor and Luke did a limited run podcast series on the First Crusade with Dan Bessner and Derek Davison from American Prestige entitled, Welcome to the Crusades: The First Crusade. the first two episodes are available for free on the main feed this week, it's a lot of fun and if you're a fan of the regular WN...

Ep 225 - Welcome to the Crusades: The First Crusade - Ep 2: Taranto

patrons, this is your ad-free regular episode for the week, we didn't answer questions this time for obvious reasons.

folks, what you'll hear today are two episodes from a brand new, limited edition podcast series that we did with Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison from American Prestige called Welcome to the Crusades: The First Crusade. it's a ten-episode deep dive into the famous and infamous First Crusade, undertaken by Catholic Europe at the instigation of the Byzantines in 1095 to re...

Ep 224 - Welcome to the Crusades: The First Crusade - Ep 1: Rome

patrons, this is your ad-free regular episode for the week, we didn't answer questions this time for obvious reasons.

folks, what you'll hear today are two episodes from a brand new, limited edition podcast series that we did with Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison from American Prestige called Welcome to the Crusades: The First Crusade. it's a ten-episode deep dive into the famous and infamous First Crusade, undertaken by Catholic Europe at the instigation of the Byzantines in 1095 to re...

Bonus Ep 88 - Andor 2.2: Rhydo the Lightning

update: released this on Thursday by mistake but enjoy all the same!

patrons, here is your first bonus episode for June 2025, it's part 2 of our 4 part series on Andor season 2.

folks, we're back in the Galaxy Far, Far Away and the nascent rebellion continues striving on. even as the Empire tightens its grip and prepares for more and greater atrocities in the future, our plucky rebels continue to fight back. however, the hour is getting late, the Death Star is getting omi...

Ep 223 - The New-Old Misconceptions

patrons, here is your ad free regular episode for the week, we answered questions from Ollie Cant and MGinyourface.

folks, we tried to stay out of the game but they keep pulling us back in. we don't want to do episodes where we solely focus on misconceptions about the Middle Ages but the new crop of Christian Nationalists and reactionaries make it unavoidable. there's little they love more than coming up with bullshit narratives about the Middle Ages and, specifically, Medieval Europe. ...

Ep 222 - Al-Andalus 4: Alhambra and Everything After

patrons, here is you ad-free episode of the week, we answered questions from gafsey and a weeb in sweden is an ikeaboo.

folks, we're gathered here today to pay respects to Al-Andalus. All good things must come to an end and this is no different. so we trace how it all came apart for Muslim Iberia as the disunified, quarreling Christian states of Iberia began working together and the Christian reconquest effort became a reality. but there's also some rays of sunshine here as we get to ta...

Bonus Ep 87 - The Decameron 4: All's Well That Ends Well

patrons, we're back with part 4 of our book club series on Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron. we're on Day 3 and the topic is stories about people who finally obtain a long sought after prize or have lost something precious and then recover it. as is Boccaccio's wont, this predictably turns into stories about incompetent clerics and extremely horny Italians. this day also has 2 noteworthy stories: story 9 is the basis for Shakespeare's All's Well That Ends Well and story 10...

Ep 221 - Al-Andalus 3: A Golden Age

patrons, here is your ad-free episode for the week, we answered questions from Ollie Cant and Cat Solas this time.

folks, we're back with part 3 of our series on Al-Andalus, aka Muslim Iberia from 711-1492. this time, we trace the history of Al-Andalus up through the rise of the Almoravid dynasty in the late 11th century and how the Christian response coalesced almost from nothing in 1063 with the Siege of Barbastro thanks to a little help from the Pope. we talk about how this is differ...

Bonus Ep 86 - Andor 2.1: Unlimited Power

Patrons, here is your first bonus episode of May 2025, it's the first part of our TV club series on season 2 of Star Wars: Andor. we did season 1 last year if you want a refresh.

folks, we're back and talk season 2 of Andor. we get caught up with our titular buddy Cassian, his rebel pals, and the Empire during the first 3-episode arc of the season. Cassian steals a prototype TIE fighter but is waylaid by a bunch of feuding, bumbling rebels while the Empire hunts for "illegal" migrant wo...

Ep 220 - Al-Andalus 2: The Real Battle of Tours

patrons, here is your ad-free episode for the week, we answered questions from Gafsey and dogspotter.

folks, we are back with our series on Al-Andalus, aka Muslim-controlled Medieval Iberia, and it's time to talk about one of the most famous incidents in its 700-year history: the Battle of Tours. though it was a large battle for the time and contemporary accounts give us a decent picture, Tours and Christian leader Charles Martel have been the benefactors of over a millennia of propagan...

Ep 219 - Al-Andalus 1: Total Umayyad Victory

patrons, here is your ad-free episode for the week. we didn't answer questions but it's for a good reason, you'll hear why.

folks, today we embark on a new series about a place in the Medieval world we haven't covered much yet, Al-Andalus, aka the Muslim rule over the Iberian Peninsula. Al-Andalus is incredibly important to the formation of European states and the growth and power of the Catholic Church as well as a vital center for Islamic martial, political, and cultural influence for...

Ep 218 - May Questions

patrons, here is your ad-free weekly episode, we answered a bunch of your questions here.

folks, we're back with a new mailbag episode as we continue to catch up on the backlog of patron questions. why are we doing it right after the last Q&A? well, frankly, Luke had to travel and didn't have time to write and research a full new episode, so here we are. we answer questions about Medieval joke foods, Qin Shi Huang's mercury-laden tomb, pigeons, Medieval publication timing, the overl...

Ep 217 - Medieval Conclaves

patrons, here is your ad-free episode of the week, we answered questions from vivi and Benjamin Cisko.

folks, as you might know, there's a papal conclave coming up, what with the passing of Pope Francis and all that, so we decided to talk about the Medieval conclaves. now, technically, conclaves didn't begin until 1059 CE but we're not letting that stop us, we're going all the way back to The Rock himself, Peter, and talking about papal succession through the ages. mostly because, if yo...

Bonus Ep 85 - The Decameron 3

note: the original file was uploaded without intro music, it has been reuploaded and resolved

patrons, here is your second bonus of April 2025 and our third episode in the book club series on Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron. we rejoin our ten fancy ladies and gentlemen hiding away from the Black Death in a villa outside Florence in 1348. for the ten Day Two stories, Filomena has been made the queen and she chose a topic of misadventures with happy endings. we explore...

Ep 216 - April Questions

Patrons, here's your ad free regular episode for the week, part 3 of The Decameron drops on Friday.

folks, we're back with more patron questions to answer. we are still catching up, so we dive in and discuss Medieval reclamation of pagan myths, land management practices, political pragmatism, funerary customs, regional political differences, weird English town names, and whether the Catholic Church could've successfully reformed itself enough to stave off the Reformation. check it out!<...

Bonus Ep 84 - Patron's Choice

patrons, here is your first bonus episode for April 2025, we will be back with part 3 of The Decameron next week.

patrons, sometimes we get questions that we don't have quite enough info on to do a whole show but it's also too much to answer in one of our questions and so we've taken 3 of those and put them into one episode for your enjoyment! we answer questions from David, Cornix, and A Weeb in Spain is a Sangriaboo on the Donation of Constantine, all the gay stuff nuns and monks were...

Ep 215 - Medieval Beauty Standards

patrons, here's your ad free regular episode of the week, we answered questions from Gafsey and Colin Keese. next bonus will be out on Friday.

folks, we have once again stumbled upon some hilariously-insane social media posts and have decided to relate them back to the Middle Ages. the main gist is this: a twitter user posted about how the Catholic Virgin Mary was an unaging smokeshow and objectively the most beautiful woman to ever live as compared to that ugly hag Protestant Virgin Ma...

Ep 214 - Medieval Women: Anna Komnene and Julian of Norwich

patrons, here's your ad-free regular episode for the week. we answered questions from Xia, Ollie Cant, and Beth in this one.

folks, we're back with another installment of our occasional Medieval women series where we look back at two influential women from the Middle Ages. today, we look at two who couldn't be more different in most respects: the Byzantine princess and historian, Anna Komnene, and the English anchoress, mystic, and visionary, Julian of Norwich. we talk about what made e...

Ep 213 - American Opinions on the Middle Ages (feat David Montgomery)

patrons, here is your ad free regular episode of the week.

folks, we're back and it's time to talk about polling! specifically, a recent YouGov poll that asked Americans for their opinions on the European Middle Ages. and before you think the worst, the responses were quite heartening! the Dark Ages myth is now below 50% and seems to be far more popular with older generations and more Americans think about the Middle Ages on a weekly basis than they do about the Roman Empire. there's a ...