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The Great Heathen Army: the cool, or terrifying, name given to a huge Norse army that landed in England in the middle of the 9th century and stayed for 13 years, devastating the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. The Viking leaders are semi-legendary, cloaked in the mythology of the Norse and the scaremongering of the Anglo-Saxons. Was the army really led by the three sons of the infamous Ragnar Lothbrook, as depicted in Assassin's Creed Valhalla? What were they trying to achieve? And after Alfred the Great, would the Great Heathen Army have considered itself successful? Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Caitlin Ellis, Associate Professor of Nordic Medieval History at the University of Oslo. She'll be the guide to lead us on our quest for answers! Listen to our previous episode about the time Viking invaders nearly killed their nemesis, Alfred the Great. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell, Matt Lewis Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: The Fate of East Mercia by Sarah Schachner Rivers and Fjords by Sarah Schachner If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Philosopher’s Stone: the source of infinite wealth and everlasting life. It is one of the most famous myths in the world. But for centuries, it was not a myth. Some of the greatest and most pioneering scientists in history believed in the power of the stone, and pursued its riches. Amongst them was Sir Isaac Newton. As is depicted in the audio drama Assassin’s Creed Gold, his private notes reveal his secret pursuit of alchemy and the Philosopher’s Stone. How far did Isaac Newton take his alchemical experiments? What did the Philosopher's Stone mean to a rational scientist of Newton’s standing? And why was his research into alchemy only recently brought to light, even though he wrote over one million words about it in his personal notes? Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Joel Klein, Molina Curator for the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences at The Huntingdon, to explain the origins of alchemy and the science of the Philosopher's Stone. See the stunning Ripley Scroll in The Huntingdon's digital collection. Listen to our previous episode about Newton's surprising career combating counterfeiting as Master of the Royal Mint in London. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: On Father's Watch by Chris Tilton Ballroom Fight (Invention No. 13 in D Minor) by Sarah Schachner The Nation, the Law, and the King by Sarah Schachner If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Assassin’s Creed games specialise in recreating the places and sounds of the past. But how can we know what music our ancestors listened to? If we can, how well does ancient music work within a modern audience’s expectations of what music is? And how does making music for a video game differ from all the other forms of entertainment we have today? Dr Holly Nielsen is joined by Steph Economou, the composer for the Assassin's Creed Valhalla: The Siege of Paris and Dawn of Ragnarok, for which she won the first ever Grammy award for video game music. Rounding out the trio is Ari Mason, who performed on both scores, and who is a specialist in the art of historical performance. Together, they can shed light on the fascinating process of transporting us to the past through music. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Dr Holly Nielsen Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Francia by Steph Economou Hásæti by Steph Economou The Siege Of Paris by Steph Economou Dawn of Ragnarök by Steph Economou, Einar Selvik If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin’s Creed Dynasty provides a vivid recreation of China as it was 1300 years ago, during the reign of the Tang Dynasty. The story focuses on a pivotal moment for the emperors, when a huge rebellion plunged the empire into a civil war that took nearly a decade - and the brutal deaths of millions - to end. Yet despite this turbulence, the Tang Dynasty is often thought to have ruled over a golden age in Chinese history, characterised by peace, stability and the peak of ancient art. To make sense of this apparent contradiction, Matt Lewis welcomes back Dr Jeremiah Jenne, host of the Barbarians at the Gate history podcast, and the historical travel podcast, By Their Own Compass. Listen to his fascinating recounting of the long history of the Great Wall of China. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Theme Master by Aaron Miller & Mark Rutherford Forbidden City (Calm Session) by Aaron Miller & Mark Rutherford If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin’s Creed: Freedom Cry reminds us of an often overlooked turning point in history: the Haitian Revolution, when the slaves of Haiti overthrew their masters and the might of the French, British and Spanish militaries to create their own state. But this remarkable achievement was overshadowed by the American and French Revolutions, and has traditionally been viewed as just a byproduct of those famous rebellions. When did the Haitian Revolution take place? How did the slaves defeat both Napoleon's army and the British Empire? How did pirates influence the course of Haiti's history? To learn more about what Haiti was like in the 18th century, and the key people and moments of the Haitian Revolution, Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Erica Johnson, author of Philanthropy and Race in the Haitian Revolution, and contributor to the Universities Studying Slavery consortium, a huge research project to uncover and understand the links of US universities’ history with slavery. Listen to how the American Revolution and French Revolution started with the Battles of Lexington & Concord and the Storming of the Bastille. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: False Paradise by Olivier Deriviere The Storm by Olivier Deriviere Ounsi by Olivier Deriviere If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Grigori Rasputin is a household name, mostly thanks to the Boney M song. And such is Rasputin’s reputation that you can’t help but think of the "mad monk" when playing Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia, even though he doesn’t appear in the game.  Was he really Russia’s greatest love machine? Did he have supernatural abilities? Was he even an ordained priest? To help answer these questions and more, Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Leonid Trofimov from Bentley University. As well as being senior lecturer in history and an expert on Russian relations with the rest of the world, he is the co-author of Seven Myths of the Russian Revolution. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by Aaron Miller, Mark Rutherford If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Among the many cool characters from the Viking Age that are brought to life in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is Alfred the Great. Before his military success against the vikings, Alfred also boasts one of the all-time great comeback stories. In January 878 all looked lost: Alfred was hiding in marshlands, his army defeated and scattered, and the Vikings controlled his kingdom. The key event that almost saw the end of Anglo-Saxon England was the Battle of Chippenham. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla recreates the battle and puts players in the heart of combat. But what do we really know about the battle? How big was a viking army? What did the Anglo-Saxons count as a 'real' battle? To help answer these questions, Matt Lewis is joined by Professor Ryan Lavelle from the University of Winchester. In addition to writing Alfred's Wars: Sources and Interpretations of Anglo-Saxon Warfare in the Viking Age, he consulted on Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Leofirth's Honor by Jesper Kyd Frozen Lands by Sarah Schachner Kingdom of Wessex by Jesper Kyd If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Portuguese merchants ran aground on the Japanese isle of Tanegashima in 1543, two worlds collided - Europeans encountered Japan for the first time. For the next 50 years, Portuguese and their partners flooded into this newly discovered land aiming to spread the power of the Christian Church and sell wares that could revolutionise Japan, like the powerful gun. But in the fiery cauldron of Sengoku Japan, Portuguese missionaries were but one player in the most bloody and brutal of political games. Assassin's Creed Shadows delves into the tensions at the heart of this culture clash. Did Buddhist and Shinto Japanese accept Christianity? Why did the Japanese see Europeans as barbaric? Were Japanese warlords like Oda Nobunaga exploited by Western traders and church leaders, or were the Europeans unwittingly being exploited by the Japanese? Matt Lewis and Prof. Frederik Cryns, historical advisor on the hit TV show Shogun, uncover how Europeans fit into 16th century Japan’s patchwork of daimyos and the momentous impact they had on feudal Japanese warfare and society. This episode was first published on 20th May 2024. Watch it here on YouTube. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit.  Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Anisha Deva Produced by: Joseph Knight, Peta Stamper, Matt Lewis Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by The Flight If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin's Creed Mirage: Valley of Memory transports players to the medieval Abbasid caliphate. One place in particular that is recreated in the game is the remarkable Jabal Ikmah, the ancient Open-Air Library. Here, on the mountains surrounding AlUla, archaeologists have found a treasure trove of texts that stretch across centuries in multiple languages and from several civilisations. Who made these inscriptions, and why? What do they reveal about the daily lives of the ancient peoples who lived in the oasis? Matt Lewis is joined by Solaiman al-Theeb, professor at the AlUla Language Institute. His work with ancient languages and inscriptions at Jabal Ikmah makes him the perfect person to reveal more about the writings in the rock. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Watch these interviews and exclusive videos on our YouTube channel. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by Brendan Angelides If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Valley of Memory recreates life in the AlUla oasis as it was over a millennium ago. Players can climb the battlements of a Muslim fortress, wander through an ancient city carved into the mountainside, and experience the vibrant sights and sounds of a medieval spice market. In this episode, Creative Director Olivier Leonardi divulges the behind-the-scenes secrets of how the game developers combined history and artistry to transport players to the unique locations and ancient atmosphere of AlUla. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. You can discover more on our YouTube channel here, including exclusive reactions from historians to the games. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Land of the Living by Brendan Angelides Southern Skies by Brendan Angelides If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin’s Creed III recreates many key events from the American Revolution, including the Boston Tea Party, when colonists resisted British taxes by dumping tea into Boston Harbor. But the game challenges the popular perception of the protest as a pure and noble defiance of tyranny. In fact, the legend of the Party started to develop nearly half a century after the event. What were the true motives of the Sons of Liberty? Did they really dress up as Native Americans? Was the Boston Tea Party as impactful as its reputation suggests? And how much tea did they destroy? Matt Lewis is joined by Prof. James Fichter, author of Tea: Consumption, Politics, and Revolution 1773-1776, to explain the real intentions and outcomes of the Boston Tea Party. Listen to our previous expert chats about the Declaration Of Independence and the Battles of Lexington & Conchord. Watch this episode here on YouTube. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit.  Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Welcome to Boston by Lorne Balfe Philadelphia by Lorne Balfe Escape in Style by Lorne Balfe If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the most profoundly influential periods in history is the 5th century BCE, when when a collection of great minds in Ancient Greece formed the foundations of Western philosophy, medicine and history itself. How did ancient doctors heal the sick? How did historians share their research with a society that didn't read? What influence did female intellectuals have on the Fathers of Philosophy? Matt Lewis presents the expertise of Prof Michael Griffin, Prof Helen King and Justin Marozzi about Socrates, Hippocrates and Herodotus - all of whom are brought to life in Assassin's Creed Odyssey for players to get a taste of what it might have been like to walk alongside these remarkable people in their daily lives. Click these links to listen to the full episodes about Socrates and his wife Xanthippe, the world's first historian Herodotus, and the most influential physician of all time Hippocrates. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. You can discover more on our YouTube channel here, including exclusive reactions from historians to the games. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music: Athens, Birthplace of Democracy by The Flight, Mike Georgiades Sokrates by The Flight, Mike Georgiades Conversations by The Flight, Mike Georgiades Atlantis by The Flight If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Valley of Memory takes our hero Basim ibn Ishaq from the glory of Baghdad in the Abbasid era to the remote oasis at Al-Ula. There, he discovers mysteries hidden in the mountains and ancient dwellings of civilisations that fell long ago. Even though the oasis at AlUla has provided sustenance to people living there throughout history, that doesn’t entirely explain why so many civilisations wanted to rule it. Instead, the answer may lie in its position on the trade routes that carried spices and incense from Arabia to the rest of the world. Where did the Incense Route travel to and from? How did it influence life in Al-Ula? And what relevance does the Route have to today's spice trade? To answer these questions, Matt Lewis is joined by Dr Sterenn Le Maguer., whose expertise in Islamic archaeology, trade and pilgrimage routes in Arabia makes her the perfect person to explore the Incense Route. Watch the episode here on YouTube. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit.  Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by Brendan Angelides If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assassin's Creed Mirage: Valley of Memory takes players to the haunting tomb city of Hegra, a remarkable memento of the Nabataeans. Hewn from the hard rock of the mountainside are spectacular, seemingly countless tombs that contain inscriptions, artefacts and echoes of this lost civilisation… Who were the Nabataeans? Where did they come from? And why do they suddenly disappear from the archaeological record at Hegra? To teach Matt Lewis more about Hegra and the Nabataean civilisation, he's joined by Professor Laïla Nehmé. Her books, Guide To Hegra: Archaeology in the Land of the Nabataeans of Arabia and AlUla: Wonder of Arabia are available online. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. You can discover more on our YouTube channel here, including exclusive reactions from historians to the games. Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Michael McDaid Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by Brendan Angelides If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anno 117: Pax Romana puts you in the place of a new Roman Governor at a crucial point in the history of the Roman Empire. Rome has never been more powerful but the mighty Emperor Trajan has died. You must choose how to keep the peace in your new province, whether in the Celtic wilds of Albion or on the Mediterranean coastlines of Latium. In this special episode recorded live at Gamescom 2025, Matt Lewis and Dr Holly Nielsen ask the senior game writer, Matt Cook, about which historical people and events inspired the game's story, how they addressed ancient attitudes to slavery, religion and warfare, and what real historical facts the developers' couldn't include for being too incredible. How does history get adapted into a video game? Click this link to watch this episode on YouTube. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit.  Hosted by: Matt Lewis Edited by: Robin McConnell Produced by: Robin McConnell Senior Producer: Anne-Marie Luff Production Manager: Beth Donaldson Executive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen Bennett Music by Dynamedion If you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here. Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.