https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-was-stranger--7313490Each episode takes one remarkable true story from history and looks beyond the familiar legend. From controversial queens and eccentric kings to forgotten rulers, disastrous marriages, bizarre customs, political betrayals, and lives almost erased from the record, History Was Stranger explores what really happened, what later generations exaggerated, and what the surviving evidence can still tell us.
Because history was never as neat, dignified, or predictable as it looks in a textbook.
]]>enHistoryCopyright Joe Holthttps://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/0d6bbf9e37ab83d0b5f781089ad20766.jpghttps://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-was-stranger--7313490Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:42:04 +0000Joe HoltJoe Holtfeeds@spreaker.comHistory Was Stranger is a documentary history podcast about the people, scandals, rivalries, disasters, obsessions, and extraordinary decisions that made the past far stranger than the version we usually learn in school. Each episode takes one...Each episode takes one remarkable true story from history and looks beyond the familiar legend. From controversial queens and eccentric kings to forgotten rulers, disastrous marriages, bizarre customs, political betrayals, and lives almost erased from the record, History Was Stranger explores what really happened, what later generations exaggerated, and what the surviving evidence can still tell us.
Because history was never as neat, dignified, or predictable as it looks in a textbook.
]]>falseca08bd8c-63ef-5f2f-94a7-17771bc44570episodichttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-emperor-who-tried-to-erase-his-own-brother--75275789They hated each other.
Within the year, Geta was dead, reportedly murdered in the arms of their mother.
But Caracalla did not stop at killing his brother.
Geta's name was removed from inscriptions. His portraits were destroyed. His face was literally scraped from images of the imperial family. Even speaking about him could become dangerous.
This episode explores one of Rome's most extreme campaigns against memory, why Caracalla needed his brother to disappear, and why trying to erase someone from history can sometimes make them impossible to forget.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75275789Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:41:35 +0000Joe HoltWhen the Roman emperor Septimius Severus died, he left the empire to his two sons, Caracalla and Geta. They hated each other. Within the year, Geta was dead, reportedly murdered in the arms of their mother. But Caracalla did not stop at killing his...They hated each other.
Within the year, Geta was dead, reportedly murdered in the arms of their mother.
But Caracalla did not stop at killing his brother.
Geta's name was removed from inscriptions. His portraits were destroyed. His face was literally scraped from images of the imperial family. Even speaking about him could become dangerous.
This episode explores one of Rome's most extreme campaigns against memory, why Caracalla needed his brother to disappear, and why trying to erase someone from history can sometimes make them impossible to forget.
]]>821ancient,caracalla,damnatio,domna,dynasty,emperors,empire,geta,history,imperial,julia,memoriae,propaganda,roman,rome,septimius,severan,severus,strangefalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-countess-accused-of-bathing-in-blood--75144303According to the legend, the wealthy Hungarian countess tortured hundreds of young women and bathed in their blood in an attempt to preserve her youth.
But the blood bath story does not appear in the surviving testimony from the original investigation. It emerged much later.
So what actually happened inside Báthory's estates?
This episode examines the accusations, the witnesses, the political interests surrounding her arrest, the executions of her servants, and the uncomfortable possibility that the truth lies somewhere between two competing legends.
One in which Elizabeth Báthory was history's most prolific female serial killer.
And another in which she was completely innocent.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75144303Thu, 17 Sep 2026 11:00:02 +0000Joe HoltElizabeth Báthory became one of the most infamous women in European history. According to the legend, the wealthy Hungarian countess tortured hundreds of young women and bathed in their blood in an attempt to preserve her youth. But the blood bath...According to the legend, the wealthy Hungarian countess tortured hundreds of young women and bathed in their blood in an attempt to preserve her youth.
But the blood bath story does not appear in the surviving testimony from the original investigation. It emerged much later.
So what actually happened inside Báthory's estates?
This episode examines the accusations, the witnesses, the political interests surrounding her arrest, the executions of her servants, and the uncomfortable possibility that the truth lies somewhere between two competing legends.
One in which Elizabeth Báthory was history's most prolific female serial killer.
And another in which she was completely innocent.
]]>730bathory,blood,countess,early,elizabeth,europe,european,historical,history,house,hungarian,killer,modern,myths,nobility,of,serial,slovakia,strange,truefalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-pope-who-put-a-dead-man-on-trial--75087330The corpse was dressed in papal robes, placed on a throne, and formally put on trial inside one of Rome's most important churches.
It sounds like an act of madness.
But the Cadaver Synod was not really about a dead man.
It was about legitimacy, rival kings, competing Roman factions, contested ordinations, and a desperate attempt to erase the political consequences of an earlier papacy.
This episode explores why Formosus was tried after death, what Stephen hoped to accomplish, why the spectacle backfired, and how one of the strangest trials in history reveals just how unstable medieval Rome had become.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75087330Sat, 12 Sep 2026 11:16:42 +0000Joe HoltIn the year eight hundred ninety seven, Pope Stephen the Sixth ordered the body of his predecessor, Pope Formosus, removed from its grave. The corpse was dressed in papal robes, placed on a throne, and formally put on trial inside one of Rome's most...The corpse was dressed in papal robes, placed on a throne, and formally put on trial inside one of Rome's most important churches.
It sounds like an act of madness.
But the Cadaver Synod was not really about a dead man.
It was about legitimacy, rival kings, competing Roman factions, contested ordinations, and a desperate attempt to erase the political consequences of an earlier papacy.
This episode explores why Formosus was tried after death, what Stephen hoped to accomplish, why the spectacle backfired, and how one of the strangest trials in history reveals just how unstable medieval Rome had become.
]]>784cadaver,century,church,empire,formosus,historical,history,holy,medieval,ninth,papal,politics,pope,roman,rome,stephen,strange,synod,vatican,vifalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-emperor-who-tried-to-make-his-horse-a-consul--75046179There is only one problem. The horse never became consul. The ancient sources say Caligula may have planned it, but centuries of retelling transformed an alleged threat into an established fact. This episode investigates what actually happened, why Caligula treated Incitatus like an aristocrat, and whether the entire episode was less about madness than about humiliating Rome's political elite.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75046179Thu, 10 Sep 2026 09:26:49 +0000Joe HoltCaligula is remembered as the Roman emperor who was so insane that he tried to appoint his favorite horse, Incitatus, to one of the highest offices in Rome. There is only one problem. The horse never became consul. The ancient sources say Caligula may...There is only one problem. The horse never became consul. The ancient sources say Caligula may have planned it, but centuries of retelling transformed an alleged threat into an established fact. This episode investigates what actually happened, why Caligula treated Incitatus like an aristocrat, and whether the entire episode was less about madness than about humiliating Rome's political elite.
]]>605ancient,caligula,cassius,claudian,consul,dio,dynasty,emperors,empire,historical,history,incitatus,julio,myths,roman,rome,strange,suetoniusfalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-queen-who-walked-away-from-her-own-throne--75019360Then, at the height of her power, she did something almost unimaginable for a seventeenth century monarch. She gave the crown away, left Sweden, converted to Catholicism, and began an entirely new life in Rome. This episode explores why one of Europe's strangest queens willingly abandoned the throne she had been raised from childhood to occupy.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75019360Wed, 09 Sep 2026 09:01:11 +0000Joe HoltChristina of Sweden inherited a kingdom that had emerged as one of Europe's great Protestant powers. She was brilliant, highly educated, famously resistant to marriage, and surrounded herself with philosophers, scholars, artists, and diplomats. Then,...Then, at the height of her power, she did something almost unimaginable for a seventeenth century monarch. She gave the crown away, left Sweden, converted to Catholicism, and began an entirely new life in Rome. This episode explores why one of Europe's strangest queens willingly abandoned the throne she had been raised from childhood to occupy.
]]>801abdication,catholicism,century,christina,descartes,european,history,of,protestant,queen,reformation,royal,seventeenth,strange,sweden,swedish,thirty,vatican,war,yearsfalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-king-who-thought-he-was-made-of-glass--75014372But beginning in adulthood, Charles suffered recurring episodes of severe mental disturbance. He attacked his own men, forgot that he was king, failed to recognize his wife, and was later reported to believe that his body was made of glass. This episode explores what really happened to Charles, what historians can and cannot diagnose, and how the illness of one man helped destabilize an entire kingdom.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/75014372Wed, 09 Sep 2026 01:04:22 +0000Joe HoltCharles the Sixth of France became king while still a child and eventually ruled during one of the most dangerous periods of the Hundred Years War. But beginning in adulthood, Charles suffered recurring episodes of severe mental disturbance. He...But beginning in adulthood, Charles suffered recurring episodes of severe mental disturbance. He attacked his own men, forgot that he was king, failed to recognize his wife, and was later reported to believe that his body was made of glass. This episode explores what really happened to Charles, what historians can and cannot diagnose, and how the illness of one man helped destabilize an entire kingdom.
]]>568agincourt,burgundy,charles,delusion,france,french,glass,health,history,hundred,king,kings,medieval,mental,of,royal,strange,vi,war,yearsfalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-queen-who-tried-to-rule-south-america--74849991She saw an extraordinary opening. If the legitimate Spanish king could not rule, perhaps she could rule in his place. This episode follows the strange political movement known as Carlotism, Carlota's return to Portugal, her refusal to accept constitutional limits, and the final struggle between two branches of her own family for the future of two kingdoms.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74849991Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:53:21 +0000Joe HoltWhen Napoleon shattered the Spanish monarchy, Carlota Joaquina found herself in Brazil while her Bourbon relatives in Spain were trapped inside a dynastic crisis. She saw an extraordinary opening. If the legitimate Spanish king could not rule, perhaps...She saw an extraordinary opening. If the legitimate Spanish king could not rule, perhaps she could rule in his place. This episode follows the strange political movement known as Carlotism, Carlota's return to Portugal, her refusal to accept constitutional limits, and the final struggle between two branches of her own family for the future of two kingdoms.
]]>749argentina,brazil,carlota,carlotism,de,history,joão,joaquina,la,liberal,miguel,monarchy,napoleon,plata,portugal,portuguese,revolution,río,spanish,vifalse2fullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/the-queen-they-called-ugly-who-tried-to-take-her-husband-s-throne--74849827But behind the insults was a far more consequential story. Long before she became Queen of Portugal, Carlota was already fighting her husband for political power. This episode follows the strange marriage, hostile court, vicious reputation, and failed conspiracy that turned one princess into one of the most controversial royal women of her age.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74849827Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:47:44 +0000Joe HoltCarlota Joaquina entered the Portuguese royal court as a child bride and spent much of her life being mocked for her appearance, her Spanish birth, and a personality that refused to fit the expectations placed on royal women. But behind the insults...But behind the insults was a far more consequential story. Long before she became Queen of Portugal, Carlota was already fighting her husband for political power. This episode follows the strange marriage, hostile court, vicious reputation, and failed conspiracy that turned one princess into one of the most controversial royal women of her age.
]]>563bourbon,carlota,documentary,european,historical,history,house,joão,joaquina,monarchy,napoleon,of,portugal,portuguese,queen,royal,royalty,spanish,strange,vifalse1full