Best Patrick Wyman / Wondery Podcasts (2024)

1
The Great Gender Divergence: Interview with Dr. Alice Evans 51:25

35m ago51:25

51:25

Gender is one of the fundamental forces structuring our world, but its impact is uneven in time and space. Dr. Alice Evans joins me to talk about the enormous strides toward gender equality that have defined the world in the past century or so, which she terms the Great Gender Divergence. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation,…

1
Rome's Patrician Republic 44:18

6d ago44:18

44:18

By 450 BC, the Roman Republic was beginning to take on the outlines of a form we recognize, with elected magistrates, a Senate, and written laws. But these were hard times for Rome, and there was no guarantee that the city would even dominate its immediate area, much less Italy and beyond. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation…

1
Listen Now: Wow in the World's Summer of Wow! 6:15

9d ago6:15

6:15

Wow in the World is the #1 science podcast for kids and their grown-ups. Hosts Mindy Thomas and Guy Raz share stories about the latest news in science, technology, and innovation. Stories that give kids hope, agency and make us all say "WOW"! New episodes come out every Monday. Listen to Wow in the World: http://wondery.fm/wowintheworld. See Privac…

1
The Birth of the Roman Republic 41:29

13d ago41:29

41:29

In 509 BC, the last king of Rome - Tarquinius Superbus - was expelled from the city, and the Republic was born. But what do we actually know about the early years of the Republic? Not much, and what we do know is at odds with the much later traditions on which we tend to rely. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance…

1
The Greatest Dynasty of Medieval France: Interview with Professor Justine Firnhaber-Baker 48:15

20d ago48:15

48:15

It's been a while since Tides of History has gone to the Middle Ages, and a wonderful new book - House of Lilies: The Dynasty that Made Medieval France - provides us with the opportunity to return. Professor Justine Firnhaber-Baker is one of the world's leading experts on medieval France, and she joins the show to talk about her new book, the Capet…

1
Sicily, Defeat, and the End of the Athenian Empire 45:03

27d ago45:03

45:03

The Peloponnesian War lasted for nearly 30 years, decades of ceaseless battles, sieges, and human misery that covered the whole of Greece. In the end, Athens' fate was decided not in Greece itself but in faraway Sicily, where the course of the war turned against Athens once and for all. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, R…

1
Understanding the Alien World of Ancient Greece: Interview with Professor Greg Anderson 56:46

1M ago56:46

56:46

It's often said that the past is a foreign country, where our basic assumptions about how the world is supposed to work don't apply. But what does that mean for the practice of history? Professor Greg Anderson has fascinating ideas about how to actually understand the people of the past on their terms, with specific regard to ancient Greece. Patric…

1
The Peloponnesian War, Part 1: Plague, Attrition, and a Decade of Bloodshed 44:50

1M ago44:50

44:50

When the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta finally broke out in 431 BC, it was small conflicts on the fringes of the Greek world that pulled the two states into conflict. Thousands upon thousands would pay the price for that over the first decade of the war. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and For…

1
The Athenian Empire and the Coming of the Peloponnesian War 40:27

2M ago40:27

40:27

The Peloponnesian War, the epic 30-year conflict between Athens and Sparta for control of Classical Greece, was a long time in coming. In fact, its roots went back to the Persian Wars, when Athens seized the opportunity to create an empire in the aftermath. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years th…

1
What Made Classical Greece Special? Interview with Professor Josiah Ober 49:54

2M ago49:54

49:54

We're often told that Classical Greece lies at the root of our modern world in some way, but what made it a special place? Professor Josiah Ober, author of The Rise and Fall of Classical Greece, joins me to discuss his approach to that question. We discuss the unique political ecology of the Greek city-states, demographic growth, and the role of in…

1
Warlords, War, and Society in Early Rome: Interview with Professor Jeremy Armstrong 1:00:31

2M ago1:00:31

1:00:31

Rome and war are inseparable topics, but how far back does their connection go? What was war like in the earliest days of the city's rise to prominence? Professor Jeremy Armstrong is an expert on early Rome and warfare in pre-Roman Italy, and he joins me to talk about warlords, generals, and the nature of warfare at Rome's beginning. See Privacy Po…

1
Classical Greece 38:59

2M ago38:59

38:59

We're often told that Greece's Classical period lies at the root of "Western Civilization," but what was actually special about that time and place? Why did it produce so many works of literature, art, architecture, and philosophy that have survived and shaped the millennia to come? Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renai…

1
Carthage, Syracuse, and the Battle for Sicily 40:43

3M ago40:43

40:43

By 480 BC, the same year Xerxes and the Persians descended on Greece, Sicily had become a battleground for the rising powers of the Central Mediterranean: Carthage, on one side, and the Greek colony of Syracuse on the other. The result was a massive battle, and its remains still survive in the archaeological record. Patrick's book is now available!…

1
The Archaeology of the Indus Valley Civilization: Interview with Professor Cameron Petrie 56:30

3M ago56:30

56:30

Archaeology is changing quickly, and few people are playing more of a direct role in the wave of fascinating new studies exploring the Indus Valley Civilization, South Asia, and Iran than Professor Cameron Petrie. We talk about his work on South Asia, the scientific revolution in archaeology, and much more. Patrick's book is now available! Get The …

1
The Rise of Carthage 41:15

3M ago41:15

41:15

Carthage is known mostly as Rome's great rival, but it was a fascinating and meaningful Mediterranean civilization in its own right. Today, we track the rise of Carthage from its foundation as a Phoenician colony to the cusp of imperial ambitions in the Mediterranean around 500 BC. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renais…

1
The Mediterranean World in 500 BC 40:59

3M ago40:59

40:59

After our long sojourn in Central, East, and South Asia, it's time to return to a Mediterranean on the cusp of enormous changes. Around 500 BC, Rome was shedding its kings, Carthage was about to become the greatest power in the Central Mediterranean, and Greece would soon enter its Classical Era. Let's take a tour. Patrick's book is now available! …

1
Why Do Ordinary People Do Terrible Things? Daniele Bolelli and Patrick Discuss 51:16

3M ago51:16

51:16

History is littered with terrible deeds and atrocities: conquest, genocide, mass enslavement, forced displacement, crimes of all sorts. Why do people agree to participate in these actions? Daniele Bolelli, host of the History on Fire podcast, joins me to discuss the topic and an essay I wrote on my Substack page, which you can find here: https://pa…

1
The Buddha and His World 41:59

4M ago41:59

41:59

The Buddha - born Siddartha Gautama - is one of the most impactful people in human history, founder of a religious tradition that has shaped the world for the past 2,500 years. But the Buddha was also a real person who lived at a specific place and time. What can we know about the Buddha's world, and how did it shape him and his message? Patrick's …

1
Climate Change and the Fall of the Indus Valley Civilization: Interview with Dr. Alena Giesche 52:29

4M ago52:29

52:29

The world's climate isn't stable, but how can we understand climate change in the past? Dr. Alena Giesche is an expert on ancient climates, and she explains both how the field of paleoclimate studies works and its application to a massive issue: the fall of the Indus Valley Civilization, a topic on which she's spent years working. Patrick's book is…

1
The Rigveda and the Dawn of the Iron Age in South Asia 39:02

4M ago39:02

39:02

The Rigveda, a collection of hymns written in the Sanskrit language more than 3,000 years ago, is the oldest religious text in the Hindu tradition. It's also an incredible window onto life at the dawn of the Iron Age in South Asia. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hard…

1
The Fall of the Indus Valley Civilization 41:16

4M ago41:16

41:16

The Indus Valley Civilization is one of the most enigmatic, sophisticated, and compelling ancient societies. For seven centuries, it thrived in the western portions of South Asia, building enormous mud-brick cities without domination by ruling kings or elites. But then, over the course of several hundred years, the IVC slowly disintegrated. Why? Pa…

1
The Rise of China's Warring States 38:40

5M ago38:40

38:40

The Warring States period in China (c. 481-221 BC) was an era of mass-mobilization warfare unlike any other the world had seen to that point. Armies of hundreds of thousands of men fought on an increasing scale for centuries, wiping out state after state until only one - Qin - would remain to rule all of China. Patrick's book is now available! Get …

1
Ordinary People in Ancient East Asia: Interview with Professor Kate Pechenkina 43:41

5M ago43:41

43:41

Professor Kate Pechenkina is an expert on the bioarchaeology of East Asia, utilizing cutting-edge tools to tell us about the lives and experiences of ordinary people in the distant past: diet, disease, trauma, the kinds of topics that written evidence simply doesn't illuminate. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissanc…

1
Confucius and His Age 39:23

5M ago39:23

39:23

Confucius is one of the most famous and influential thinkers in all of human history, but who was he? What did he believe, and what did he teach? And how did his time and place - the closing years of the Spring and Autumn period - make him what he was? Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Sh…

1
China in the Eastern Zhou: Spring and Autumn 41:24

5M ago41:24

41:24

The Spring and Autumn period, lasting from 771 to 481 BC, marked the high point of aristocratic power in ancient China. This was an age of nobility and political fragmentation, as the Zhou Dynasty's power dwindled away and small states fought one another in endless cycles of violence. Rulers fell prey to plots and assassinations, and new families r…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Patrick Wyman / Wondery Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

1
Tides of History

Wondery / Patrick Wyman

1
The Fall of Rome Podcast

Patrick Wyman / Wondery

1
The Great Gender Divergence: Interview with Dr. Alice Evans 51:25

1
Rome's Patrician Republic 44:18

1
Listen Now: Wow in the World's Summer of Wow! 6:15

1
The Birth of the Roman Republic 41:29

1
The Greatest Dynasty of Medieval France: Interview with Professor Justine Firnhaber-Baker 48:15

1
Sicily, Defeat, and the End of the Athenian Empire 45:03

1
Understanding the Alien World of Ancient Greece: Interview with Professor Greg Anderson 56:46

1
The Peloponnesian War, Part 1: Plague, Attrition, and a Decade of Bloodshed 44:50

1
The Athenian Empire and the Coming of the Peloponnesian War 40:27

1
What Made Classical Greece Special? Interview with Professor Josiah Ober 49:54

1
Warlords, War, and Society in Early Rome: Interview with Professor Jeremy Armstrong 1:00:31

1
Classical Greece 38:59

1
Carthage, Syracuse, and the Battle for Sicily 40:43

1
The Archaeology of the Indus Valley Civilization: Interview with Professor Cameron Petrie 56:30

1
The Rise of Carthage 41:15

1
The Mediterranean World in 500 BC 40:59

1
Why Do Ordinary People Do Terrible Things? Daniele Bolelli and Patrick Discuss 51:16

1
The Buddha and His World 41:59

1
Climate Change and the Fall of the Indus Valley Civilization: Interview with Dr. Alena Giesche 52:29

1
The Rigveda and the Dawn of the Iron Age in South Asia 39:02

1
The Fall of the Indus Valley Civilization 41:16

1
The Rise of China's Warring States 38:40

1
Ordinary People in Ancient East Asia: Interview with Professor Kate Pechenkina 43:41

1
Confucius and His Age 39:23

1
China in the Eastern Zhou: Spring and Autumn 41:24

Quick Reference Guide