Here at History Hit, we love exploring the historic sites managed by the National Trust. In this special film we participate in a major National Trust event, the annual Octavia Hill lecture, delivered by renowned classicist and broadcaster, Professor Mary Beard.

Dan Snow speaks with Mary about...

A unique one hour special that, at the times, celebrated the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Beatrix Potter.

Following in the footsteps of the Edwardian publishing sensation, the JK Rowling of her day, actress Patricia Routledge travels from London to Scotland and the Lake District to discover...

Dan Snow explores behind the scenes at the majestic Kensington Palace, the glittering centre of the royal court in early Georgian England. It's a very special time to visit - the Historic Royal Palaces team has been delving deep into the archives to lift the veil of the public facing court and e...

Who was the worst King and Queen of England? What made a King or Queen successful?

To coincide with the US release of his new book, 'Unruly: A History of England's King and Queens', comedian and author David Mitchell, sits down with historian Dan Snow to explore how England's monarchs, while act...

Eleanor of Aquitaine is at least as responsible for the vast empire of the Plantagenets as her more celebrated husband, Henry II. Sara Cockerill has written a wonderful biography of Eleanor, placing her back at the centre of English medieval history where she belongs. Sara and Dan discuss her lon...

In 865 AD, England was invaded by the Great Heathen Army. The Great Viking Army, as it was also known, was made up of a coalition of Scandinavian warriors mainly from Denmark and, legend has it, four of the five sons of Ragnar Lothbrok, including Halfdan Ragnarsson, Ivar the Boneless, Bjorn Irone...

On Midsummer's Day in 1509 a 17 year old was crowned king of England. He would go on to transform his realm over almost four decades on the throne. He would revolutionise its religion, reforge its politics and its relations with neighbouring countries, and establish a royal navy. But, by the time...

The War Of The Roses was a notorious and prolonged civil war between the two dominant houses of medieval England: House York and House Lancaster. On the 565th anniversary of the Battle of St Albans, today Dan is joined by historian and author Matt Lewis to discuss how this battle, and the resulti...

On the 26 February 2021, around 38 metres of wall collapsed at Hurst Castle, one of a series of vital coastal forts built by Henry VIII in the 16th century to protect England from threat of invasion by the European powers. Recently, Dan went out on his kayak to assess the damage at the castle whi...

Redcliffe Caves are a series of man made tunnels beneath the Redcliffe area of Bristol, England. The Triassic red sandstone was dug into in the Middle ages to provide sand for glass making and pottery production. Further excavation took place from the 17th to early 19th centuries and used for sto...

‘Dictator of British Botany’. ‘Autocrat of the Philosophers’. Sir Joseph Banks has been called many things over the past few centuries. A towering figure in the development of British botany and British natural history during the 18th century, he voyaged across the World with famous navigators su...

Treason is a word we all know, but how did treason law develop in England? Over the centuries, those linked with some of the most audacious attacks on the establishment have been branded traitors. If treason failed, it usually led to the most gruesome of death penalties. Some of those convicted w...

1066 - one of the most famous years in English history. In a succession crisis like no other three warlords separated by hundreds of miles and savage seas vied for control of the English throne in a series of bloody battles. From Harald Hardrada's crowning victory at Fulford to the renowned Battl...

The peaceful South Wales town of Hay-on-Wye offers few clues today of its brutal past on a violent frontier. A monument to this history can be found in Hay Castle. Once right on the border between England and Wales, it sits in a region densely packed with castles that saw border skirmishes and bi...

In episode two of our series ‘Castles that Made Britain’, we join Matt Lewis at his favourite fortress in the whole of Britain, Ludlow Castle. Built as a frontier fortress, Ludlow stands proud on what was the harsh wild western frontier between England and Wales. One of the first to be rebuilt in...

In the final episode of the first series of ‘The Castles that Made Britain’, Matt Lewis explores the fascinating history of Conwy Castle on the coast of North Wales.

Towards the end of the turbulent and blood-soaked 13th century, King Edward I of England sought to impose his rule on the rest of ...

Castles have loomed over the landscape of Britain for centuries. They hold the keys to unlocking some of the greatest stories of our past.

Join History Hit's medieval expert, Matt Lewis, in this new series as he explores some of Britain’s most iconic castles. It is a spectacular journey to some...

In this episode of Real Fake History, Dan Snow is joined by historians Matt Lewis, Nathen Amin, and Tracy Borman to discuss the hypothetical scenario: what if Richard III had won the Battle of Bosworth?

On the 22nd of August 1485, the future of England was decided on the fields of Bosworth. Rich...

For more than 900 years, the Tower of London has occupied its place at the heart of English life. At various times a royal citadel, palace, menagerie, observatory, public records office, mint, arsenal and, even to this day, the home of the crown jewels of England, since 1100 it has famously serve...

Matt Lewis travels to the Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre in Leicestershire to meet Richard Mackinder, an archaeologist who has spent the last two decades scouring the earth around the site where King Richard III and Henry Tudor clashed in one of the most famous battles in English history.
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The 14th Century is often called the worst century in the whole of British history - plague, war and famine! And amidst all this chaos, the first recorded act of public rebellion in English history sent revolutionary ripples across the entire medieval world. This uprising is remembered as the “Pe...

In part two we investigate the fiery and frenetic days following 13th June 1381. With huge numbers of peasants having gathered around London... things were about to turn violent.

We follow their footsteps as they cross London Bridge and enter the city. Destruction starts quickly as they begin t...

Most stories about the Peasant’s Revolt end with the violent death of Wat Tyler, but there is so much more to this story than the attack on London. In our final episode Matt travels to East Anglia to explore newly uncovered sources that can tell us so much more about the vicious events that happe...

How far would you go to save your immortal soul?’

This is the question that plagued Tudor High Chancellor, Sir Thomas More. Lawyer, philosophiser, and advisor to Henry VIII, when the court turned on its head at the arrival of Anne Boleyn. Hounded by prolific characters like Thomas Cromwell, his ...