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  • 163: The Battle of Maritsa
    2026/06/18

    John V Palaiologos finally returned to Constantinople after being rescued from Venetian detention by his loyal son Manuel, who raised money in Thessalonica, sold his own possessions, and even offered himself as a hostage when the funds proved insufficient. Meanwhile, John's eldest son Andronikos IV had enjoyed ruling in his father's absence and openly refused to help secure his release, leading John to elevate Manuel as his new heir and co-emperor. As this dynastic crisis unfolded, a far greater threat emerged in the Balkans. Believing Sultan Murad was distracted by war in Anatolia, the Serbian princes Vukašin and Jovan Uglješa assembled a large coalition army and marched toward Adrianople to drive the Ottomans from Europe. Near the Maritsa River in 1371, however, their overconfident force was caught completely off guard when a vastly smaller Ottoman army launched a surprise night attack, setting the Serbian camp ablaze and throwing the army into panic. Thousands were killed, drowned, captured, or scattered, while both Serbian leaders perished in the disaster. The Battle of the Maritsa shattered Serbian power, spread terror throughout the Balkans, and convinced many that the Ottomans were an unstoppable force. When news reached Constantinople, John V realized that if even the strongest army in Eastern Europe could be destroyed so completely, the Byzantine Empire had little hope of surviving. The battle also revealed the strategic dilemma facing Murad: while expanding into Europe, he was constantly forced to defend Anatolia against the Karamanids, a powerful Turkish rival angered by Ottoman expansion and determined to challenge Ottoman dominance of the Turkish world.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

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    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

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    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    29 分
  • 162: The 100 Years war: Part One: The Black Prince
    2026/06/04

    In this episode we move away from the collapse of Constantinople, and the rise of the Ottomans, and see exactly why France and England were nowhere to be seen. For centuries, the French and English were championed crusaders, and now they were fighting each other in a war that would turn so gruesome and bloody it would drain over a century of the best fighting men and fertile land in a shrinking world engulfed by cold winters and short summers. This is an episode about why France and England never came to rescue Constantinople. This is a story about the 100 Years War.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

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    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    1 時間 38 分
  • 161: The Emperor Bends the Knee
    2026/05/21

    In this episode, we cover the emperor's journey to Rome, where he finally bends the knee to the Pope and converts to Catholicism. This was a gamble, for he risked alienating his people by converting to the faith of those who sacked Constantinople in 1204. But he felt like he had no other choice, for there was no way he was going to defeat the Ottoman Empire on his own. The only trouble was that converting didn't guarantee crusading relief, for the western hemisphere was gripped in one of the worst wars in centuries. Everything turned worse when he found himself stranded in Venice with no money to return home and imprisoned by his lenders.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    28 分
  • 160: The Savoyard Expedition
    2026/05/07

    The Savoyard Crusade of 1366 was a late-medieval military expedition led by Amadeus VI, known as the "Green Count," to assist his cousin, the Byzantine Emperor John V Palaiologos. Amadeus successfully recaptured the strategic fortress of Gallipoli from the Ottoman Turks and later campaigned against the Bulgarian Empire to secure the Emperor’s release from captivity. Although the expedition achieved notable short-term victories and briefly bolstered Byzantine defenses, the gains were largely reversed within a few years as the Ottomans consolidated their control over the Balkans.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com


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    27 分
  • 159: The Fall of Adrianople
    2026/04/23

    As Emperor John V sits atop a crumbling Byzantine world, the once-mighty Roman Empire has been reduced to scattered fragments surrounded by enemies on all sides. While plague ravages Constantinople and internal divisions weaken any hope of recovery, a new and unstoppable force rises in the east. Under Murad I, the Ottomans transform from raiders into rulers, capturing Adrianople and establishing their first true European capital. With no army to resist and no allies to call upon, the Byzantines face devastation both beyond their walls and at their gates, as the fall of Adrianople marks the moment Constantinople becomes an isolated island in a hostile world. In this episode, we witness not just a conquest, but a turning point—where Rome does not fall in a single blow, but begins to quietly, inevitably, collapse from within.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    29 分
  • 158: The Earthquake of Galipoli
    2026/04/09

    When an Earthquake shattered the walls of Galipoli, the citizens fled in fear, and instead of a recovery effort sent by the Byzantines to rebuild the city, it was left empty. The Ottomans saw this as an opportunity of a lifetime and moved entire families across the sea from Asia to Europe, settling the city, rebuilding its walls, and forming a permanent Ottoman settlement on the European side of the Byzantine Empire. This was the first of many moves, which led to the total conquest of Byzantium and the Balkans as a whole.

    BLACK DEATH PDF Here --> http://www.infezmed.it/media/journal/Vol_19_3_2011_10.pdf

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    35 分
  • 157: The Black Death hits Constantinople
    2026/03/26

    The Black Death entered Europe through the black sea while the Mongols were besieging the city of Caffa. The Genoese ships evacuated the city after the plague broke out, sailing to Constantinople and then to Egypt and Sicily. This was the worst outbreak in human history, and it came right as the climate grew colder and the wars stretched beyond empires and borders. The damage to Constantinople cannot be overstated. Almost half the population died, and this occurred right at the end of the civil war, while the Ottomans were gobbling up the empire.

    BLACK DEATH PDF Here --> http://www.infezmed.it/media/journal/Vol_19_3_2011_10.pdf

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    31 分
  • 156: The Civil War of Kantekouzenos
    2026/03/12

    In this episode John Kantezouzenos goes to war with the wife of his deceased best friend... the previous emperor. They both fought this war out of fear that the other would destroy the empire in its time of need, and they had good reason to suspect each other. But really, all they accomplished was to speed up the empire's collapse. When they should have been working together to defend the empire from its many powerful enemies, they spent their last treasures destroying themselves, leaving the door wide open for the Ottomans to move in.

    The History of Modern Greece Podcast covers the events from Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and the fall of Constantinople in 1453, to the years under the Ottoman Empire, and 1821 when the Greeks fought for independence... all the way to the modern-day.

    EMAIL US: historyofmoderngreece@gmail.com

    Website: www.moderngreecepodcast.com

    SOCIAL MEDIA: Go here to chat with us.

    https://www.instagram.com/historyofmodern%20greece/

    https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578023316172

    Music by Mark Jungerman: www.marcjungermann.com

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    37 分