The Bicks Pod
Episodes
Tuesday Jul 30, 2019
Episode 7 - The Hundred Years' War
Tuesday Jul 30, 2019
Tuesday Jul 30, 2019
To help illuminate a bit of the history as Shakespeare saw it, we’re looking at the Hundred Years' War as we now understand it. All the nuance, the technological innovations, the separate dynastic squabbles that contributed to the way the war ended, and its legacy are all points of conversation we discuss here. We’ll hopefully get a sense of the changes that affected over five generations of English monarchs and millions of nobles, peasants, and soldiers who fought in this long, grueling war, and understand a bit more about where Shakespeare was coming from as well as how we should look at this period in history.
Notes:
https://www.britannica.com/event/Hundred-Years-War
A Brief History of the Hundred Years War by Desmond Seward
The Hundred Years' War - YouTube
History Matters - The Hundred Years' War
"Love Affair That Made the Hundred Years' War Inevitable"
Tuesday Jul 16, 2019
Episode 6 - Henry VI Part 1
Tuesday Jul 16, 2019
Tuesday Jul 16, 2019
This episode is dedicated to one of Shakespeare's least performed (and least deserving of performance) plays: Henry VI Part 1.
We talk the discrepancies with history, the shoddy characterization, and the reality that this was not likely written by Shakespeare alone. While not huge fans of this particular play, we did come to appreciate the appreciable aspects of it, including the unintentionally hilarious use of hobby-horses in the only filmed version available, and the distinct possibility of Star Wars prequel memes. We also were excited to put our newly found knowledge of the Wars of the Roses (see Episode 5) to the use as we dissected the major inconsistencies of the play.
Don't let our doom and gloom over this play corrupt your view of all Shakespeare's histories though! Coming up soon will be the sequel to this one, which (spoiler alert) we enjoyed very much.
Tuesday Jul 02, 2019
Episode 5 - The Wars of the Roses
Tuesday Jul 02, 2019
Tuesday Jul 02, 2019
As we enter the world of Shakespeare's history plays, we figured it was time for a backgrounder on the period of history being shown, as we understand it today. Starting with the dynastic feud that ran the course of almost all of Shakespeare's English history plays - the twin tetralogies with their numerous Henrys and penchant for big battles - the Wars of the Roses.
Follow along as we give you a condensed version of the history, opine about the nature of kingship, and talk about the recursive impact of Shakespeare: the way he wrote about history, and subsequently helped shape the way that same history has been viewed ever since.
Notes:
(lineage chart from: https://thehistoryofengland.co.uk/resource/wars-of-the-roses-family-trees/)
Crusader Kings II (Currently on sale for the Steam Summer Sale)
Europa Universalis IV (Also on sale)
The Wars of the Roses: England's First Civil War by Trevor Royle
The Wars of the Roses: The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors
Episode 1 of Britain's Bloody Crown (Aidan incorrectly titled it the Hollow Crown) the documentary that neatly summarizes the book Aidan read
British History's Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley - Episode 1: The Wars of the Roses
Britain's Real Monarch with Tony Robinson