Celts and the European Iron Age

Tides of History

Wondery / Patrick Wyman

Documentary, Society & Culture, History

4.8 • 6.3K Ratings

🗓️ 14 August 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

We have long thought of the Celts (or Gauls) as the antithesis of the ""civilized"" cultures of the Mediterranean, but new research shows that they were building cities and states at the same time as cities like Rome and Athens were becoming the places we know today.

Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or audiobook (read by Patrick) here: https://bit.ly/PWverge. And check out Patrick's new podcast The Pursuit of Dadliness! It’s all about “Dad Culture,” and Patrick will interview some fascinating guests about everything from tall wooden ships to smoked meats to comfortable sneakers to history, sports, culture, and politics. https://bit.ly/PWtPoD

Listen to new episodes 1 week early, to exclusive seasons 1 and 2, and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/tidesofhistory

Be the first to know about Wondery’s newest podcasts, curated recommendations, and more! Sign up now at https://wondery.fm/wonderynewsletter

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to Tides of History early and ad-free right now.
0:04.6	Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.
0:09.2	Wondry.
0:09.7	Heat radiated from the burning houses.
0:26.6	Flames licked upward through the thatched roofs and engulfed the timber framing of even the largest structures. The woman felt as if her hair might catch on fire as she ran down the muddy street just from proximity to the blades.
0:32.6	She gripped her daughter's hand tighter and yanked her along through the chaos toward the gates. At first, she had thought
0:38.6	the fire was an accident. Such things happened. The farmstead in which she had grown up,
0:43.4	just a few minutes walk away down the big hill, had to be rebuilt after one of the cattle
0:47.4	kicked a lamp into a pile of straw. The cow had survived. Her mother had not. The memory
0:53.7	sent another surge of tightness into
0:55.6	her chest, and it occurred to her now how much she detested the flames. Even cooking fires
1:00.3	made her nervous. The sight of the whole hilltop ablaze was enough to send her into a panic.
1:06.0	Her daughter was crying, but the woman's breath was coming too quickly and great gasping heaves
1:10.5	to comfort her.
1:11.6	They needed to run.
1:12.6	Men were coming behind them, men with long, gleaming iron swords, bare-chested and painted her tattoo, swinging their weapons in great shopping arcs.
1:21.6	She had seen what those swords could do.
1:23.6	One mustached killer had taken the smith's head off cleanly with a single stroke and smiled
1:28.8	while he did it. Blood, Grovos, ripped from the blade, her husband's blood. She couldn't even
1:35.7	muster the breath to scream, but that was when she ran. The king, Rik, was their word, was already
1:42.3	dead, she was sure. The invaders had started at the big timber hall,
1:46.2	slaughtering the guards and throwing lit torches into anything that would burn,
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 25 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Wondery / Patrick Wyman, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Wondery / Patrick Wyman and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.