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The Hundred Years war did not arise from a vacuum. The 12th and 13th centuries had seen near constant conflict between the English and French Crowns. As both kingdoms began to grow stronger and richer the wars between the two would also grow in intensity. In 1337 tensions boiled over yet again and war wasContinue reading “Episode 5: The Hundred Years War”

If there was one good that dominated medieval commerce it was cloth, and if there was one region that dominated the production and trade of cloth it was Flanders. Flanders, tucked right between France, The Holy Roman Empire, and England, was the commercial center of medieval Northern Europe. It’s cities were rich and powerful andContinue reading “Episode 4: Flanders and the Rise of Towns”

Before there were Valois, there were Capetians, both in France and in Burgundy. The Capetian House of Burgundy ruled the Duchy for over three centuries and transformed it from a collection of territories to a single political unit. These dukes set the stage for their Valois successors to rise to great heights. Time Period Covered:Continue reading “Episode 3: The House of Burgundy”

In this episode we’re covering the centuries between King Clothair’s conquest of the Kingdom of Burgundy and King Robert II’s conquest of the Duchy of Burgundy. A lot changed in that period and we’re going to look at the decline of the Merovingians, the rise and fall of the Carolingians, the rise of Feudalism, someContinue reading “Episode 2: From Kingdom to Duchy”

Welcome to Grand Dukes of the West! This episode begins with an introduction to the show and continues with a history of the Late Antique kingdoms of the Burgundians. The Burgundians were not the most famous of the Germanic Tribes that menaced the Roman Empire in its twilight days, but they did leave a lastingContinue reading “Episode 1: The Burgundians and Their Kingdoms”