History Profiles

Emerging from the fifth century's mist are Hengist and Horsa—legendary figures of the Germanic world. These brothers, according to early English traditions, led the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, the forebears of modern English, across the sea to Britain's shores.
In ancient tales, Hengist is depicted as the founding father of the Kingdom of Kent. However, the line between legend and history is blurred, with some scholars suggesting Hengist and Horsa might be symbolic rather than historical figures, possibly representing divine twin brothers revered in Germanic cultures.
Their names are preserved in early English chronicles such as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, The History of the Britons, Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People, and Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain. In Old English, Hengist means stallion and Horsa means horse, both symbols of power and conquest. This is their story.
Music by Alexander Nakarada - CreatorChordsTrack: Celtic Music → "Grundar" by Alexander Nakarada (Royalty Free)Link: Celtic Music → "Grundar" by Alexander Nakarada

00:00: Introduction01:29: Ancestry04:19: The Invasion of Britain: The History of the Britons09:09: The Invasion of Britain: Anglo-Saxon Chronicle11:45: Legacy & The Kingdom of Kent
#Hengist #Horsa #Anglo-Saxon #Kent #Anglo-Saxonhistory #Britishhistory #Invasion #HistoryoftheBritons #Anglo-SaxonChronicle #Germanicmythology
See show notes: https://inlet.fm/history-profiles/episodes/698d42396016bd231ef104a6
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Before the establishment of saints and monasteries in East Anglia, before kings were crowned in stone halls or immortalized in written laws, there was Wehha.
In the shadowy centuries of the sixth age, as new peoples crossed the sea and the ancient Roman world in Britain faded, Anglo-Saxon tradition recalls Wehha as the inaugural king of the East Angles. Historical accounts suggest he lived and ruled as a pagan lord during the era of settlement and conflict, when migrants from Frisia and southern Jutland forged a new kingdom along England's eastern shores.
This was an era before chronicles, where power was won by blood and sword. From Wehha came Wuffa, his son, who established the House of the Wuffingas, the royal dynasty that ruled East Anglia for generations over the lands later known as Norfolk and Suffolk. Under the Wuffingas, East Anglia rose as a prominent Anglo-Saxon kingdom, with its kings laid to rest with treasures and warriors remembered in legend.
However, much of their history has been lost over time. Viking invasions of the ninth century and the dissolution of monasteries in the sixteenth shattered the libraries that once preserved their deeds. What remains are fragments—names, lineages, echoes.
An echo survives in the Historia Brittonum, naming Wehha, father of Wuffa, as the first of the Wuffingas. From this single line, historians trace the dynasty's origins to the mid-sixth century, when East Anglia emerged from the mists as a kingdom.
00:00 Introduction02:01 Ancestry03:33 The Migration & Theories05:19 Wehha in the epic Beowulf06:37 Legacy & kin of the wolf
Music by Alexander Nakarada - CreatorChordsTrack: Celtic Music → "Grundar" by Alexander Nakarada (Royalty Free)Link

00:00:00: Introduction00:02:01: Ancestry00:03:33: The Migration & Theories00:05:19: Wehha in the epic Beowulf00:06:37: Legacy & kin of the wolf
#Wehha #Wuffa #EastAnglia #Wuffingas #Anglo-Saxon #history #migration #warriorking #legendarykings #Beowulf #Vikinginvasions
See show notes: https://inlet.fm/history-profiles/episodes/69894deb7460f21ed4761515
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In the early medieval era, Mercia emerged as a dominant kingdom in Britain, founded by Icel, the first King of the Mercians. His lineage traced back to ancient Germanic royalty. Around 515 AD, as Roman influence waned, Icel led his people across the North Sea into a land ripe for conquest, establishing a formidable dynasty, the Iclingas.
His descendants included Penda, the last great pagan king, and Offa, a powerful ruler who shaped the English economy. Despite the lack of written records from his time, Icel's legacy lives on in genealogies and the enduring power of his descendants.
Music by Alexander Nakarada - CreatorChordsTrack: Celtic Music → "Grundar" by Alexander Nakarada (Royalty Free)Listen here

00:00:00: Introduction00:02:07: Ancestry00:04:24: Life00:07:15: Opinion of Historians00:09:19: Legacy and the Iclingas
#Icel #Mercia #Anglo-Saxon #Iclingas #Penda #Offa #Englishhistory #MedievalBritain
See show notes: https://inlet.fm/history-profiles/episodes/6985bbcf17fabf32cc99396e
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In the early dawn of post-Roman Britain, Cerdic emerges from legend and history. Recognized by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as the first king of Wessex, he ruled from approximately 519 to 534 AD. His legacy links him as the ancestor of subsequent Wessex kings. However, Cerdic's origins, ethnicity, and very existence are subjects of intense debate, straddling myth and historical memory.
Cerdic, in his time, was not known as a “West Saxon” king but as the leader of the Gewissae—a tribal group believed to be Germanic mercenaries settling in Britain post-Roman era. Fascinatingly, Cerdic's name might not be Germanic but Brittonic, possibly derived from Caratīcos, hinting at his potential native Briton roots, with his lineage becoming Anglicised over time. This theory is supported by the names of his descendants—Ceawlin, Cedda, and Cædwalla—reflecting a fusion of cultures.
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, composed over three centuries after Cerdic's death during Alfred the Great’s reign, is influenced by time, politics, and myth-making. Still, it immortalizes Cerdic as the first king of Wessex, tracing his lineage back to Woden, the chief god of the Germanic pantheon. Whether Cerdic was a man, myth, or something in between, he remains a pivotal figure in England's formation, where legends melded with kingship.

00:00: Introduction02:09: Cerdic in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle04:57: Opinions of Historians08:14: Legacy
#Cerdic #Wessex #Anglo-SaxonChronicle #Englishkings #Gewissae #Cerdic'sancestry #mythandhistory #Brittonicorigins #Woden #Anglo-Saxonhistory
See show notes: https://inlet.fm/history-profiles/episodes/6982b670000ba87757641613
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Explore the legendary tales of Ragnar Lothbrok's five famous sons. Delve into riveting stories of Ivar the Boneless, Halfdan Ragnarsson, Ubba Ragnarsson, Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, and Björn Ironside.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction - Ragnar Lothbrok
02:26 Ivar the Boneless - The Cursed Heathen
19:12 Halfdan Ragnarsson - The First Viking King of Northumbria
33:58 Ubba Ragnarsson - Legendary Viking War Lord
42:56 Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye - The Mythical Ancestor of Kings
52:58 Björn Ironside - The Warrior Champion
Music by Alexander Nakarada - CreatorChordsTrack: Celtic Music → "Grundar" by Alexander Nakarada (Royalty Free)Listen here
Sources:

The Gesta Danorum

The Saga of Ragnar Lodrok and his Sons

Annals of Ireland

Annals of Ulster

Vulsunga saga

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

00:00:00: Introduction - Ragnar Lothbrok00:02:26: Ivar the Boneless - The Cursed Heathen00:19:12: Halfdan Ragnarsson - The First Viking King of Northumbria00:33:58: Ubba Ragnarsson - Legendary Viking War Lord00:42:56: Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye - The Mythical Ancestor of Kings00:52:58: Björn Ironside - The Warrior Champion
#RagnarLothbrok #IvartheBoneless #HalfdanRagnarsson #UbbaRagnarsson #SigurdSnake-in-the-Eye #BjörnIronside #Viking #Vikinghistory #Norsemythology #Vikinglegends
See show notes: https://inlet.fm/history-profiles/episodes/697d707ca0b588c7d4f588d2
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