Relevant History

Following the siege of Acre, Richard the Lionheart finds himself alone at the head of the Crusader army. Now, he and Saladin will battle for the ultimate prize: Jerusalem. Both men face a race against time. Richard’s brother John is conspiring agains...

Richard the Lionheart is going on Crusade, rushing to relieve the siege of Acre. As the king of England and ruler of much of France, he brings with him the largest military force in the Crusader coalition. But on his way to the Middle East, he gets s...

The idea of England and France as one country sounds like a ridiculous idea. But for a short period, England and much of France were indeed ruled by the same kings. How close did they come to becoming an actual country? The story of Richard the Lionh...

While Crusader armies dither outside Damascus, a Turkish warlord named Nur ad-Din would forge a new Syrian kingdom. His successor, Saladin, would transform that kingdom into an Empire. Meanwhile, court life in the Kingdom of Jerusalem devolves into a...

What happens when you call a holy war without a defined goal? In this episode, the leaders of Europe put on a first-rate display of incompetence, and the Second Crusade ends in predictable disaster. But on the western coast of Iberia, a king named Al...

The First Crusade was far from “merely” a religious affair. National and cultural differences influenced the entire course of the crusade, from its inception at the Council of Clermont to its culmination at the Siege of Jerusalem in 1099. This is the...

In the waning days of World War II, a castle full of French VIP hostages is surrounded by murderous SS troops. Can a joint relief force of American and German troops reach them in time to prevent the inevitable massacre?   SUBSCRIBE TO RELEVANT HISTO...

In 1896, the armies of Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II would prove their mettle against European steel. But after their defeat at the Battle of Adwa, the Italians are looking for revenge. And in Mussolini, they have a leader willing to go to war again. ...

As the Middle Ages give way to the Age of Exploration and the modern era begins, Ethiopia faces a series of threats. Internal divisions, foreign invasion, and colonization are all on the menu. Will the Ethiopian people survive and flourish? Or will K...

The history of ancient Ethiopia is a mixture of myth and legend. And yet the Ethiopian people are a central part of modern history. Their royal dynasty, descended from King Solomon, made policy for centuries. But what is the origin of the Solomonic l...