Brunhild and Fredegund: The Queens Who Fought for 40 Years

Gone Medieval

History Hit

History

4.6 • 2.2K Ratings

🗓️ 8 March 2022

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We've all heard epic tales of early medieval kings, but what about the queens? It doesn't get much more spectacularly brutal than Brunhild and Fredegund, two sixth century queens who fought a bloody civil war against one another that lasted no less than four decades.

The rival matriarchs commanded armies, developed taxation policies, established infrastructure and negotiated with emperors and popes... yet their story has been largely forgotten, until now. In this episode for International Women's Day, host, Dr Cat Jarman is joined by award-winning poet and writer Shelley Puhak, whose new book The Dark Queens: The Bloody Rivalry That Forged the Medieval World tells this gripping tale of power, ambition and murderous rivalry in early medieval France.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	In 1998, a young researcher found that a technique used by elite athletes could help
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0:11.6	I'm Nancy Baselchuk, host of 63 Degrees North, a podcast about science, technology and
0:17.6	history from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
0:22.0	This week, what happened when our researcher defied the experts?
0:26.4	Listen wherever you get podcasts.
0:30.2	Have you ever wondered why one of Ruan Cathedral's towers is called the Tower of Butter?
0:35.6	Or what animals have faced trials in courts for?
0:39.2	Or even how the black country got its name?
0:42.4	Well, you can find the answers to questions like these and hundreds more in our new book,
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0:50.2	It's the perfect present for any history fan.
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0:58.9	forward slash book.
1:04.8	Hello and welcome to Gone Medieval.
1:06.8	I'm Dr. Kat Jarman.
1:10.2	Stories we hear about early medieval Europe are often filled with battles and the rulership
1:15.1	of kings. But what about the queens? We certainly don't hear quite as much about those,
1:21.6	and certainly not in the earliest part of the video period.
1:25.2	Now if you're listening to this today on the Tuesday, the 8th of March, 2022,
1:30.7	you'll probably know that today is International Women's Day,
	...

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