Podcast
Fortune's Wheel: A Podcast History of Our Medieval Story
Hosted by Jonathon LaRosa · EN
The Middle Ages—a time often dismissed, yet it is the crucible where the foundations of our modern world were forged. This era, full of brutal power struggles, explosive change, and unexpected alliances, laid the borders, cultures, and traditions we live by today. Through relentless research and gripping storytelling, this podcast resurrects the forgotten world of our medieval ancestors, unraveling the tangled web spanning innumerable stories. The modern world was never born in isolation—it was fought for, built, and connected across continents.
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20episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
214: A Most Convenient Arrow
6d ago00:40:11Tap to summarizeDonate: Buy Me A Coffee!SEASON 9: ARCHITECTS OF STABILITYEPISODE 214: A Most Convenient ArrowIf a king falls in a forest and no one is around to witness it…was it an assassination or the most convenient stroke of luck in English history? Join us as we follow the final hunt of William Rufus, sift through the earliest medieval accounts, separate centuries of legend from contemporary evidence, and uncover how a single arrow changed the course of England forever. ALSO, I tried a few things on this episode in the editing phase, so I’m eager to hear your thoughts? Should the sounds and sound effects be continued, or is the show good without them? Reach out on X or in the comments of the show!Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastDonate: Buy Me A Coffee!
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213: A Very Curthose Thing to Do
4w ago00:46:51Tap to summarizeDonate: Buy Me A Coffee!SEASON 9: ARCHITECTS OF STABILITYEPISODE 213: A Very Curthose Thing to DoThe First Crusade is over, but its reverberations are only beginning to be felt. As the 11th century comes to a close, we follow Robert Curthose on his long journey home and discover how the road back from Jerusalem changed the future of England forever. This is the story of how one century ends, another begins, and how history can pivot on something as simple...and as tragic...as taking too long to come home.Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastDonate: Buy Me A Coffee!
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212: Ascalon: The Final Battle
4w ago00:44:05Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 212: Ascalon: The Final BattleJerusalem was firmly in crusader hands, but the Fatimids weren’t yet finished. On this episode, we see the final chapter in the story of the First Crusade.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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211: Holy City, Unholy Slaughter
Jun 1100:44:05Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 211: Holy City, Unholy SlaughterStanding at the walls, a behemoth task was about to unfold: After four long years and thousands of miles traveled in some of the most hostile territory in the medieval world for Christians, could Jerusalem finally be recaptured? FAIR WARNING: This episode gets a bit graphic. Listener discretion advised.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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210: "Many Wept For Joy"
May 2900:43:10Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 210: “Many Wept For Joy”The road from Arqa to Jerusalem was no stroll in the park, and soon the crusaders found themselves humbled at the sight of Jerusalem…at long last. The anonymous author of the Gesta Francorum wrote, “When they finally saw Jerusalem, many wept for joy.” Despite the great humility each pilgrim experienced upon seeing the city for the first time, they were still denied entry. These walls have never been easily breached, but Antioch had taught these pilgrims many valuable lessons. Each lesson would be put to the test against the holiest city of them all. No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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209: Ground Zero: Jerusalem
Apr 1700:54:19Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 209: Ground Zero: JerusalemThis is the final offering from my archive—an episode I couldn’t leave behind. It became something more than a retelling; it became a reckoning with one of the most consequential places in human history.Because everything — everything — seems to lead back to Jerusalem.Long before crusaders fixed their eyes on its walls in 1099, this city had already stood at the center of the human story: a meeting point of heaven and earth, of covenant and conquest, of faith and blood. For Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, Jerusalem is not merely a city — it is memory, promise, and destiny intertwined. Empires rose and fell for it. Prophets wept over it. Kings fought to possess it. And still, it endured — scarred, sacred, and unyielding.To understand the First Crusade, you must first understand this: Jerusalem is not the destination. It is the axis upon which the story turns.So before the armies arrive… before the siege begins…let’s step back and see the city that made it all inevitable.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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208: A Crusade Divided
Apr 1400:33:12Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 208: A Crusade DividedAntioch had fallen—and with it, unity. Bohemond of Taranto claimed the city as his prize, but the greater question lingered: who, if anyone, could command the Crusade itself? Raymond of Toulouse would test that claim, pressing southward with visions not merely of victory, but of purpose. Yet between Antioch and Jerusalem lay more than distance—it was a road darkened by hunger, ambition, and fracture.At Ma'arrat al-Numan, desperation reached its most harrowing depths, as starvation drove crusaders to acts that would haunt the memory of Christendom. What began as a holy expedition now strained under the weight of human weakness, competing loyalties, and the terrible cost of survival.The path to Jerusalem remained—but the Crusade itself stood divided.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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207: Antioch & the Gate of Heaven
Apr 800:52:41Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 205: Antioch & the Gate to HeavenAs Antioch grinds its besiegers down to the bone, whispers of salvation begin to circulate—quiet plans, private bargains, and a single gate that might open from the inside. Bohemond and Tancred step out of the mud and into the realm of cunning, where redemption is no longer earned by endurance but by nerve, secrecy, and timing. This episode follows the moment when suffering gives way to revelation, and the road out of hell begins not with a miracle, but with a choice.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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206: Antioch & the Harrowing of Hope
Apr 800:49:42Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 206: Antioch & the Harrowing of HopeThe long siege of Antioch grinds on, and the crusaders are forced to endure more than a military struggle. Between disaster and miraculous deliverance, they fight not only for survival, but for meaning, as hope is beaten, tested, and harrowed by suffering.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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205: Antioch & the Winter in Hell
Feb 900:32:30Tap to summarizeSEASON 8: The First CrusadeEPISODE 205: Antioch & the Winter in HellWinter descends on Antioch like a verdict. Starvation, disease, and desertion hollow out the Crusader camps while Ridwan of Aleppo and Duqaq of Damascus circle like patient predators, turning every foraging run into a blood tax. This episode lives in the season where faith freezes, hope thins, and survival becomes the only prayer still answerable.No More Paywalls! How?If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared history to life, warts and all, free to the public with absolutely no more paywalls…ever…please consider donating to my caffeine-mediated research and writing through the website/app Buy Me A Coffee! With opportunities for one-time donations and even a monthly donation plan, you can voluntarily contribute to the continuation of this show. I would be eternally grateful!NOTE: DISREGARD ANY MENTION OF PATREON. That account has been closed in the process of tearing down any and all paywalls! Social Media:YouTube: Fortune’s Wheel PodcastMeta: https://www.facebook.com/fortunes.wheel.3 X: https://twitter.com/WheelPodcastBuy Me A Coffee!
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