Ancient History Fangirl

The Secret Lives of Julio-Claudian Wives (Part 3)

Help keep our podcast going by contributing to our Patreon! ⁠⁠ In our last episode, Livia and Octavia were at each other’s throats over which one of their sons would be chosen as Augustus’ heir. The unfortunate thing is that the heirs kept dying. Meanwhile, the daughter and granddaughter of Augustus—Julia the Elder and Agrippina the Elder—were the first generations of the new autocracy. They never knew democracy—and from the beginning, they complied with Augustus’ vision for women: get married young, to whoever he told you to, and have many, many children. These girls complied, and paid a terrible price for the kingdom their foremothers built—a price we’re still paying today. Sponsors and Advertising This episode is sponsored by Taskrabbit. Get $15 off your first task at Taskrabbit.com or the Taskrabbit app using promo code FANGIRL. This podcast is a member of Airwave Media podcast network. Want to advertise on our show? Please direct advertising inquiries to advertising@airwavemedia.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Secret Lives of Julio-Claudian Wives (Part 2)

⁠⁠Help keep our podcast going by contributing to our Patreon! ⁠ In our last episode, Octavian had just defeated Cleopatra and Mark Antony. His sister Octavia had refused to renounce her wayward husband (Mark Antony), behaving with an intensity of loyalty that Octavian did not hesitate to use in his propaganda war against his enemy. Meanwhile, Livia and Octavian had both divorced their spouses, shortly after children were born, to marry each other. Both were equally cutthroat--and Livia refused to ever be on the wrong side of politics again. Now, as Octavian returns triumphant, these two women work beside him to tear Roman democracy down and start again—with themselves at the apex of power.    Sponsors and Advertising This episode is sponsored by Taskrabbit. Get $15 off your first task at Taskrabbit.com or the Taskrabbit app using promo code FANGIRL. This podcast is a member of Airwave Media podcast network. Want to advertise on our show? Please direct advertising inquiries to advertising@airwavemedia.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

RE-RELEASE: Fulvia: Original Gangster of Ancient Rome

⁠⁠Help keep our podcast going by contributing to our Patreon! ⁠ The romance between Mark Antony and Cleopatra has beguiled us for centuries. What most people don’t realize is that when Mark Antony met Cleopatra, he was already married—to someone just as epic. Her name was Fulvia. Cleopatra had glamour and divinity and lots of money. But Fulvia had the gangs. She was a populist firebrand, military leader, and for a while, the undisputed power in Rome: both in the Senate and in the streets. Sponsors and Advertising This podcast is a member of Airwave Media podcast network. Want to advertise on our show? Please direct advertising inquiries to advertising@airwavemedia.com. This episode is sponsored by Taskrabbit. Get $15 off your first task at Taskrabbit.com or the Taskrabbit app using promo code FANGIRL. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Secret Lives of Julio-Claudian Wives (Part 1)

⁠⁠Help keep our podcast going by contributing to our Patreon! The First Ladies of Rome—the women of Augustus’ family—played a role in building his empire. Octavia, Livia, Julia, Agrippina—these were the women who helped kill a democracy. In this episode, we will explore how they were complicit in their own oppression—how they were manipulated, how they were used, and how they used their power and influence: for status, for safety, and sometimes for survival.   Sponsors and Advertising This episode is sponsored by Taskrabbit. Get $15 off your first task at Taskrabbit.com or the Taskrabbit app using promo code FANGIRL. This podcast is a member of Airwave Media podcast network. Want to advertise on our show? Please direct advertising inquiries to advertising@airwavemedia.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AHFG Book Club: Aphrodite & Ares: An Immortal Affair (With Jennifer Saint)

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Help keep our podcast going by contributing to our Patreon! ⁠ Aphrodite, goddess of love and sex, took many lovers in the mythology. But perhaps the most important was Ares. They adored each other; they had many children together; they could not keep apart . Their relationship was (for the ancient Greeks) surprisingly…healthy? Today we talk all things Aphrodite with bestselling author Jennifer Saint: her relationship with Ares, her many other lovers, and what her story tells us about how the ancients viewed love and romance. Sponsors and Advertising: This episode is sponsored by Taskrabbit. Get $15 off your first task at Taskrabbit.com or the Taskrabbit app using promo code FANGIRL. This podcast is a member of Airwave Media podcast network. Want to advertise on our show? Please direct advertising inquiries to advertising@airwavemedia.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices