A Soldier and A Scholar 31 - The Battle of Plataea I
Episode 31: Victorious at Salamis, the Greeks can smell further victory on land, but does their alliance have the manpower and...
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After Him! Persians in Italy?: Democedes of Croton and Darius I
In a previous blog entry, we looked at the story of Oroetes, the rebellious Lydian satrap of the Persian Empire in the 520s BC. In the...
A Soldier and A Scholar 30 - The God King Bleeds
Episode 30: After a shocking and crushing Greek victory at Salamis, how will the God King Xerxes deal with his first defeat? How do the...
Crucifixion and Comeuppance: Oroetes the Satrap
The Achaemenid Persian Empire was perhaps the first superpower of the ancient world, establishing its ‘King of Kings’ as an immensely...
Arion and the Dolphin
You would be forgiven for thinking that this is a Biblical headline was about the story of Jonah and the Whale. However, looking past...
A Soldier and a Scholar 29: Salamis - 'It's a Trap!'
Episode 29; A Spartan king may lay dead on the the battlefield and Athens itself may be a burnt ruin, but the Greeks have a plan for the...
IJDoD I: Indiana Jones and the Antikythera Mechanism
SPOILERS for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny The eponymous ‘Dial of Destiny’ was based on an actual mechanical device, the name of...
A Soldier and a Scholar 28: The Empire Strikes Back
Episode 28: Despite the heroics at Thermopylae and the importance of Artemisium, the Persian juggernaut continues its ways south, finally...
Cla…Cla…Claudius the Scholar
When faced with the notion of a scholarly Roman emperor, you would be forgiven for immediately thinking of the great philosopher king,...
A Soldier and A Scholar 27 - The Battle of Artemisium
Episode 27: While some Spartans and their king were taking their place in history, a no less important battle was occurring in the waters...
Ptolemy’s Map of Ireland and Street Names in Belfast
It is not just mythological, divine and actual ancient people that have inspired classical street names in Belfast. There are also some...
No Irish History Before AD600?
Published 2018 to much fanfare, with President Michael D. Higgins giving an address, the 4-volume Cambridge History of Ireland is by all...
A Soldier and a Scholar 26: The Myths of Thermopylae
Episode 26: After the heroic defeat came the myths and legends... Just how many Spartans/Greeks were there at Thermopylae? How did they...
Ancient and Mythological Street Names in Belfast
The area occupied by modern Belfast has seen some form of human occupation since the Bronze Age. The Giant’s Ring is an almost...
A Soldier and a Scholar 25: The Battle of Thermopylae
Episode 25: A small pass in northern Greece becomes the site of a heroic stand by a small(ish) Spartan-led Greek army against the largest...
Two Roman Sentries: Summing up Romano-Jewish Relations
Let’s get this out of the way... Monty Python’s Life of Brian is a comedic and satirical masterpiece. There are so many scenes which...
A Soldier and a Scholar 24: The Pan-Hellenic Alliance
Episode 24: Can the Greek city-states set aside their long-standing differences and come together to face the overwhelming power of the...
Nero’s Afterlife Part II: Nero Redivivus
The appearance of three False Neros in the two decades after the emperor’s death in 68 was not the only ‘afterlife’ that Nero had. He...
A Soldier and A Scholar 23 - Interbellum, SPARTAN STYLE
Episode 23: Mad kings fall, heroes rise, court intrigue... just a few of things going on in Sparta during the interbellum......
Nero’s Afterlife Part I: “Never Say Nero Again”
Confronted with rebellions by Vindex in Gaul and Galba in Spain and rumours of the allegiance of Verginius Rufus’ army in Germania, the...
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