Offa, King of the Mercians

2026-04-24

Download

Was Offa a tyrant whose reputation was forever tainted by the killing of his prospective son-in-law? Or a visionary ruler whose achievements have been overshadowed by legend?Offa is largely known for murderous acts and building a dyke. But he was so much more: a great leader who reshaped Mercia into the dominant power in southern Britain, and pioneered new models of kingship that would influence generations.Matt Lewis talks to Professor Rory Naismith, to rehabilitate Offa and challenge the way we understand power in early medieval...

Was Offa a tyrant whose reputation was forever tainted by the killing of his prospective son-in-law? Or a visionary ruler whose achievements have been overshadowed by legend?

Offa is largely known for murderous acts and building a dyke. But he was so much more: a great leader who reshaped Mercia into the dominant power in southern Britain, and pioneered new models of kingship that would influence generations.

Matt Lewis talks to Professor Rory Naismith, to rehabilitate Offa and challenge the way we understand power in early medieval England.

MORE

Rise of Mercia

Listen on Apple

Listen on Spotify

Rise of Wessex

Listen on Apple

Listen on Spotify

Gone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the producers are Rob Weinberg and Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Comments (3)