About Dan Snow's History Hit
Historian Dan Snow journeys across the globe to tell the stories of history's defining moments. From the Colosseum in Rome to the Great Wall of China, the battlefields of Waterloo to the Tomb of Tutankhamun, join Dan as he explores the how and why of the greatest monuments, battles, heroes, villains and events that have shaped our world. New episodes on Mondays and Thursdays with bonus subscriber...
Dan Snow's History Hit episodeslatest 50
#1835The Battle of Stamford Bridge Explained
· 31:50
Dan explains how England’s last great Viking invasion met its brutal end. At Stamford Bridge in September 1066, King Harold Godwinson’s army faced Harald Hardrada, the most feared warrior of his age, in a battle of...
#1834The Battle of New York Explained
· 1:42:06
Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Hudson, the East River - today, these are the very heart and soul of New York City. But in 1776, they were the battlefield on which the American Revolution nearly died. Today Dan explains this...
#1833The Rise & Fall of Babylon
· 48:32
Babylon has a PR problem, and it's 2,600 years in the making. The Bible remembers it as the ultimate city of sin, the place that crushed Jerusalem and dragged the Jewish people into exile. But if you look beyond this...
#1832Templar's Tunnels, HMS Victory and Troy: History's Best Historical Sites with Dan Jones
· 32:38
The two great Dans of history - Dan Snow and Dan Jones - team up to explore the stories behind some of the world's best historical sites. Dan Jones explains the mysteries of the Templars' Tunnels in the Old City of Acre...
#1830The Brutal History of The First Warplanes
· 50:55
Flying aces, flaming wreckage and deadly dogfights in the skies defined the First World War’s brutal air war. From fragile reconnaissance planes to lethal fighter aircraft, aerial warfare evolved at astonishing speed...
#1829Medieval Krakow
· 1:02:45
In the Middle Ages, Krakow was one of Central Europe’s greatest cities: a thriving crossroads of kings, merchants and legends, crowned by a royal castle and haunted by tales of dragons. But in 1241, catastrophe arrived...
#1828Was Henry VIII England's Most Evil King?
· 48:47
This is the turbulent reign of that infamous Tudor monarch, Henry VIII. His spectacularly complicated love life, break with Rome, political executions and ruthless pursuit of power. Today we examine his rule and the...
#1827The Making of Osama bin Laden
· 1:07:02
A deep dive into the rise and fall of Osama bin Laden, from his affluent childhood in Saudi Arabia to his assassination during the biggest manhunt in modern history. For this, Dan is joined by Jason Burke, author of...
#1825Marco Polo and The Court of the Great Kublai Khan
· 36:48
No throne on Earth came close to rivalling it. The court of Kublai Khan stood at the centre of an empire that threw every other power of its age into shadow. Vast and wealthy beyond comprehension, it seemed a world away...
#1824The Naval Revolution: Triumph and Disaster
· 36:58
A deafening impact, a shattered destroyer, and a legacy that completely revolutionised warfare at sea. When HMS Tiger sank beneath the waves one dark night in 1908, over half of her crew were lost to the depths, and the...
#1823The Fall of the Ancient Maya
· 54:33
What happens when a civilisation at its peak begins to fail? Historians have long been fascinated by the Maya Collapse in the 9th century: why the great cities of Mesoamerica were abandoned, why their populations...
#1822The Rise of the Ancient Maya
· 57:31
For more than 3,000 years, the Maya built one of the Ancient world's greatest civilisations. They raised towering pyramids in the rainforest, mastered the environment and established powerful dynasties- long before the...
#1820Was Caesar's invasion of Britain a disaster?
· 34:25
Today, we trace Julius Caesar’s dramatic invasions into Britain - two bold expeditions that tested Rome’s reach at the very edge of the known world. Ships were battered by storms, soldiers struggled with unfamiliar...
#1819The Blitz Beyond London
· 42:31
Newcastle, Liverpool, Glasgow, Cardiff - all of these places and more were bombed during the Blitz. From the devastated shipyards of Tyneside to the bombed-out docks of Shieldhall, we strip away the myth of the Blitz...
#1818A Short History of The Airport
· 48:00
It’s where our ancient instincts to travel, to trade, to reunite with family and explore meet modern technology and innovation. From muddy airfields to gleaming cathedrals of designer shopping, fancy restaurants and...
#1817The Mycenaean World
· 40:05
Before 1200 BC, the ancient world was more connected than you'd ever imagine. Egyptian pharaohs, Hittite emperors and Mycenaean warrior-kings trading gifts, forging alliances and going to war across the glittering...
#1815BONUS: The Complete Map of the Odyssey
· 51:54
A special video podcast where Dan charts the course of Odysseus through the Mediterranean as he investigates the true places that could have inspired the Odyssey. Using his new Big Pad, Dan investigates the theories of...
#1814The Real St George and the Dragon
· 30:17
He wasn't an English knight, but actually a Roman soldier, and the dragon didn't appear until centuries later in the medieval period. So what is the origin of the Saint George and the Dragon myth? And why do so many...
#1813The Real History Behind The Odyssey
· 53:21
Is there any truth in the Odyssey, and what does it all mean? We know it's a story where a man convenes with monsters and gods, ghosts and mythological beings, but the Odyssey actually does tell us a lot about Ancient...
#1812A Day in the Life of a Gladiator
· 36:29
Step into the roaring arena of ancient Rome, where every sunrise could be a gladiator's last... From brutal training and hard-won fame to the thunderous spectacle that captivated an empire, discover what life was really...
#1811What Happens in The Odyssey?
· 1:09:24
Dan narrates his own epic retelling of the Odyssey - following Odysseus' route around the Mediterranean. He tells the story of the many trials and tribulations the Greek hero faces on his 10-year journey home to his...
#1809The Birth of America Explained
· 56:23
Born from revolution, this bold vision of liberty toppled the old order and reshaped the course of democracy. Today, we discover how a few powerful ideas changed history forever. Joining us is Gary Gerstle, Emeritus...
#1805Agrippina the Younger: Rome's Most Notorious Empress
· 51:20
Agrippina the Younger was one of the most powerful players in Roman history: a ruthless political operator who clawed her way to co-rule the empire, only to be murdered by the son she put on the throne. We're joined by...
#1806Life in the Trenches
· 38:50
What was life really like in the trenches of the First World War? In this episode, we step into the mud of the Western Front to hear about the horrors that soldiers faced; from artillery bombardments and sniper fire to...
#1807Spain vs Portugal: The Spice Race
· 37:30
What happens when tiny volcanic islands become the most valuable real estate on Earth? In the 16th century, Portugal and Spain launched a deadly race to control the global spice trade, sparking an age of empire...
#1803Why Did The Roman Empire Collapse?
· 53:22
How does an empire spanning three continents and half a millennium fall apart? In the final episode of our series on the Roman Empire, we're joined by Professor Peter Heather to unravel Rome's collapse - from the chaos...
#1802The Origins of the Tank
· 51:38
How did century-old 'landships' developed from agricultural tractors evolve into the armoured giants of the modern battlefield? Today, we trace the lineage of the tank, from its origins in the trenches of the First...
#1801Mary Beard on Ruling the Roman Empire
· 52:10
What did it take to rule an empire that was never meant to have an emperor? In this second episode of our series on the Roman Empire, we're joined by classicist Mary Beard to trace how Roman leadership evolved over a...
#1800Harald Hardrada
· 50:20
Exile, mercenary, Viking king. Harald Hardrada, 'Thunderbolt of the North', fought his way from Norway to Byzantium, from the streets of Constantinople to the battlefields of Sicily. He married a princess, blinded an...
#1798The Rise of the Roman Empire
· 40:13
How did a cluster of Iron Age huts grow into one of history's greatest civilisations? In the first episode of our series on the Roman Empire, we're joined by Dr Simon Elliott to trace Rome's rise - from its humble...
#1797The Great Fire of London
· 31:07
In the early hours of September 2, 1666, a small fire broke out on the ground floor of a baker's house in Pudding Lane. In five days, that small fire would devastate the third-largest city in the Western world. Adrian...
#1796SAS Hijacked A Fascist Train To Liberate A Concentration Camp
· 48:32
Today, we uncover a forgotten SAS mission straight out of a war thriller: an elite unit jumps the chain of command and hijacks a 'pirate train', turning it into a weapon against fascist Italy. Their goal? To launch a...
#1795The Rise and Fall of the Boleyns
· 43:35
We trace the extraordinary rise and fall of the House of Boleyn. From humble Norfolk tenant farmers, the Boleyns used everything from wool trading to the diplomatic service to climb to the heights of Tudor power...
#1793Anglo-Saxons vs Vikings: The Battle That Gave Birth To England
· 42:27
Dan explains the Battle of Brunanburh, an epic clash that decided the fate of the British Isles. On one side, the Anglo-Saxon forces of King Æthelstan, fighting for his vision for a unified England; on the other, a...
#1792The Rise and Fall of Venice
· 44:06
Venice was the impossible city that rose from mudflats to become a medieval superpower. Venice dominated Mediterranean trade through its vast navy, revolutionary shipyards, and strategic position between East and West...
#1791The Seven Deadly Sins
· 40:41
Greed, Lust, Pride, Sloth, Gluttony, Envy, Wrath! You might be surprised to learn the true history of the Seven Deadly Sins doesn't start in the bible. Rather, they were first thought up by a Greek monk in the 4th...
#1790Investigating the Nazi Massacre at Rumbula
· 31:17
An underground Nazi weapons factory and stash of 77-year-old Denazification files. What is it really like to discover that your grandfather was a member of the SS? In 2023, journalist Lorenz Hemicker joined us to tell...
#1788How Did Japan Become A Superpower?
· 47:16
In the 19th century, Japan's samurai era ended, and the country transformed from a secluded feudal society into a modern industrial superpower. From sweeping political reforms to rapid industrialisation, this is the...
#1787The Scandalous Life of Lord Byron
· 44:07
WARNING: This episode includes discussion of sexual abuse and explicit language. He appalled and titillated Regency polite society in equal measure. Lord Byron was a poet, a lover, a rebel, a romantic, an appalling...
#1786Bloody Mary
· 49:10
In 1553, Mary Tudor became the first woman to sit on the English throne - a reign of just five years, that history has remembered almost exclusively through the lens of her enemies. But today, we revisit the story of...
#1785The Black Prince
· 53:06
He was one of medieval England’s most formidable warriors. Today we hear how Edward of Woodstock - the Black Prince - earned that reputation, tracing his rise during the Hundred Years’ War and exploring the nature of...
#1783The Assassination of Trotsky
· 1:04:35
This is the true story of the plot to kill Stalin's greatest enemy. It involves ice axe, a bloody study in Mexico City, and a betrayal years in the making. At its centre is Ramón Mercader, a Soviet-trained agent who...
#1782Churchill's Secret Army
· 51:16
Trap doors under toilets, hidden radio rooms in the back of wardrobes, secret bases behind waterfalls....Dan investigates an extraordinary network of secret resistance cells set up during Britain's "darkest hour". In...
#1781The Siege of Acre: The Last Battle of the Crusades
· 36:34
The desperate, violent last stand that ended two centuries of crusading in the Holy Land. We hear how, outnumbered, divided and desperate, the Christian defenders decided to fight to the bitter end against the Mamluk...
#1780Eleanor of Aquitaine
· 54:00
Eleanor of Aquitaine was one of the most powerful figures of the medieval world: twice a queen, a crusader, a rebel and the architect of an empire. Through her marriages to Louis VII of France and Henry II of England...
#1778The Knights Templar vs the Order of Assassins
· 47:07
During the crusades, there was a legendary rivalry between two extraordinary medieval orders: the Assassins and the Templars. Separating myth from history, we uncover their beliefs, covert operations and lasting legacy...
#1777The Commanders: The Best of the Rest
· 40:54
For the final episode in our 'Commanders' series, we've drawn on your suggestions to pay tribute to the commanders who didn’t make our main episodes, but left a lasting mark on the Second World War. Joining us is...
#1776How and Why the Crusades Started
· 49:44
This is your guide to almost two centuries of holy war - from start to finish. We untangle faith, politics and myth, and reveal how the Crusades reshaped Europe, the Middle East and relations between Islam and...
#1775The Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov
· 1:04:49
Marshal Georgy Zhukov was undoubtedly one of the Second World War's most formidable figures. Rising from humble peasant origins, Zhukov became the archetype of the Soviet warrior. He commanded vast armies of millions in...
#1773The Real Peaky Blinders
· 38:44
Today, we step beyond the slow-motion swagger and into the gritty, complex reality of the Peaky Blinders. Who were the gangsters behind the myths? And what was life actually like in the backstreets of late 19th and...
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Frequently asked questions about Dan Snow's History Hit
How can I listen to Dan Snow's History Hit online for free?+
You can play Dan Snow's History Hit straight from this page: pick the episode you want and press play. There is no sign-up, no app to download and nothing to install.
How many episodes does Dan Snow's History Hit have?+
Dan Snow's History Hit has published 1651 episodes so far. This page carries the 50 most recent, newest first.
Who presents Dan Snow's History Hit?+
Dan Snow's History Hit is presented by History Hit.
What is the latest episode of Dan Snow's History Hit?+
The most recent episode is "The Battle of Stamford Bridge Explained", published on 10 Sep 2026. New episodes appear here as soon as they go out on the programme's feed.
Can I listen to Dan Snow's History Hit from outside the UK?+
Yes. Dan Snow's History Hit plays over the internet, so it works from any country with no location restrictions.