Tides of History
Audible / Patrick Wyman
Everywhere around us are echoes of the past. Those echoes define the boundaries of states and countries, how we pray and how we fight. They determine what money we spend and how we earn it at work, what language we speak and how we raise our children. From Wondery, host Patrick Wyman, PhD (“Fall Of Rome”) helps us understand our world and how it got to be the way it is.Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of Tides of History ad-free right now. Join Audible today by downloading the Audible app.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 26, 2026 • 38min
Babylon, a City for the Ages: Interview with Professor Lloyd Llewelyn-Jones
Lloyd Llewelyn-Jones, Chair in ancient history at Cardiff University and author of Babylon: The Biography of a Metropolis, guides a tour through Babylon's long, rebounding life. He discusses the city's repeated rises, why people kept returning, and the rich cuneiform archives. Short dives cover everyday streets, merchants' letters, and the Kassite century of diplomacy.
21 snips
Mar 19, 2026 • 33min
Popular History and Academic History
A candid look at why academic training and popular storytelling often clash. Personal career choices and the realities of the PhD job market come up. How narrative techniques borrowed from sports coverage and great popular historians shape engaging history. The tension between rigorous scholarship and compelling storytelling is explored, with a case for combining deep research and strong narrative craft.
14 snips
Mar 12, 2026 • 35min
Migration in Human History
A lively tour of how migration shaped human history, from ancient Homo sapiens dispersals to Bronze and Iron Age movements. It covers the rise and fall of migration theories, the role of networks and information, and how ancient DNA has rewritten migration stories. The episode highlights how migrations vary case by case and why small-scale mobility matters as much as mass movements.
9 snips
Mar 5, 2026 • 50min
The Last Mailbag!
A lively mailbag covering who would dominate social media in the past, from Martin Luther’s pamphlet tactics to Benjamin Franklin’s wit. Discussions hop from origins of bows and horseback riding to new prehistory finds and Roman mining. There are debates on judging conquistadors, how ancient letters were compiled, ancient DNA limits, and how making the show reshaped the presenter's research interests.
22 snips
Feb 26, 2026 • 35min
Ancient DNA and the Future of the Past
A dive into how ancient DNA has transformed archaeology and reshaped questions about the past. Short surveys of molecular tools like isotopes and genomes show new ways to track diet, movement, and trade. Stories trace technical limits, contamination pitfalls, and past controversies. The conversation highlights interdisciplinary collaboration and how genetic data can reveal kinship, migration, and social patterns.
25 snips
Feb 19, 2026 • 33min
A Voyage Through the Mediterranean at the Fall of Carthage
A whirlwind tour of the Mediterranean at Rome’s 146 BC triumph. Short regional snapshots explore Italy’s farms and infrastructure, Iberia’s mines and cultures, and North Africa after Carthage’s destruction. Eyes turn to Alexandria, Hellenistic fragility, eastern diplomacy, and Delos as a bustling trade hub.
4 snips
Feb 12, 2026 • 51min
What is the Atlantic World? Interview with Professor Keith Pluymers
Keith Pluymers, an associate professor of history who studies the early modern Atlantic and political ecology, guides a tour of connected worlds. He explains how sea routes shrank distances. They discuss Atlantic Creoles and limits to mobility. Key nodes like West Africa, the Caribbean, and Newfoundland get attention, along with tobacco, firearms, and how networks and merchants shaped varied colonial projects.
16 snips
Feb 5, 2026 • 30min
The Life of Publius Afer (Rome, 200 BC)
A composite life traces a Carthaginian youth seized during Scipio’s campaigns and dragged into Roman slavery. The narrative follows brutal raids, market auctions, and the voyage to Italy. Life on a Roman estate, harsh punishments, and a surprising rise to overseer shape the story. The arc ends with partial manumission and the complex failures and small victories of enslaved families.
41 snips
Jan 29, 2026 • 36min
Ancient Slaveries
A tour of how slavery varied across ancient societies with scenes from city households to brutal labor gangs. Discussions cover how many people were enslaved, where they worked, and why different systems produced milder or harsher lives. The episode contrasts ancient patterns with later American slavery and highlights how work shaped the fate of the enslaved.
30 snips
Jan 26, 2026 • 27min
Past Lives: Saint Patrick, Slavery, and the Fall of the Roman Empire
A lively tour of a Romano-British teenager who became the famous Patrick, including his abduction and six years in slavery. Exploration of what Roman identity looked like in Britain and how cities and local traditions coexisted. A look at the collapse of Roman Britain, rising violence, and the wider practice of Irish slave-raiding. Discussion of how enslavement shaped Patrick’s faith and writings.
