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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...
ptcrawford
Mar 31, 20245 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Mar 17, 20246 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Mar 10, 20241 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Mar 3, 20245 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Feb 18, 20241 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Feb 11, 20244 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Jan 28, 20241 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Jan 21, 20245 min read


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......
ptcrawford
Jan 7, 20241 min read


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...
ptcrawford
Dec 31, 202310 min read


GoTAH II: Davos, Ramsay and the Cannae Stratagem at the Battle of the Bastards
In 216BC, the Italian countryside played host to the Battle of Cannae between the forces of Carthage and the legions of the Roman...
ptcrawford
Dec 24, 20234 min read


A Soldier and A Scholar 22 - Athenian Interbellum
Episode 22: With Persian war seemingly on the backburner, we take a look at the interbellum period of Athens, complete with political...
ptcrawford
Dec 17, 20231 min read


The ‘Donation of Odoacer’ Part II: Documenting the Donation
We saw last time that the career of Pierius must have been significant enough before his appearance in the historical record for Odoacer...
ptcrawford
Dec 10, 20238 min read


A Soldier and A Scholar 21 - 10 year Interbellum - Persia
Episode 21: Between Marathon and the next Persian invasion of Greece, the Achaemenid Empire faced ten years of upheaval, with the death...
ptcrawford
Nov 26, 20231 min read


The 'Donation of Odoacer' Part I: The Career of Pierius
Flavius Odoacer is most famous as the man who deposed the ‘last’ western emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476, becoming the first non-Roman...
ptcrawford
Nov 12, 20236 min read


A Soldier and a Scholar 20 - The Impact and Legends of Marathon
Episode 20: A break down the impact of the battle of Marathon, its fallout, and some of the incredible stories and legends told by...
ptcrawford
Nov 5, 20231 min read


Almost Up-setting the Order: The Kharijite Statelets of the Second Fitna (ii) The Najdat
The doctrinal divide that sealed the fate of Qatari’s burgeoning Azariqa statelet in Kirman was not the first instance of such internal...
ptcrawford
Oct 29, 20237 min read


A Soldier and a Scholar 19 - The Battle of Snickers... err... Marathon
Episode 19: The first great contest between a Greek army and the Persians in Greece... https://mncvgk.podbean.com/e/a-soldier-and-a-schol...
ptcrawford
Oct 15, 20231 min read


Almost Up-setting the Order: The Kharijite Statelets of the Second Fitna (i) The Azariqa
Most of the focus on the Second Fitna – the second civil war that engulfed the Arab caliphate upon the accession of Yazid I, son of...
ptcrawford
Oct 8, 20236 min read


A Soldier and a Scholar 18 - Revenge on Naxos and Eritrea
Episode 17: Persia crosses the Aegean sea once more to continue exacting revenge on the Greek world, this time at the expense of Eritrea...
ptcrawford
Oct 1, 20231 min read
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