The Renaissance Times

In this episode of The Renaissance Times (Episode 225), Cameron and Ray return to Florence to explore Michelangelo’s earliest surviving sculpture, Madonna of the Stairs (Madonna della Scala)—a marble relief carved when he was just fifteen. They marvel at his prodigious skill, discussing how this modest, unfinished piece already reveals his genius for depth, motion, and emotional complexity. Along the way, they detour through Florence’s real estate market of the 1500s (where a thirty-three-year-old Michelangelo was rich enough to buy five adjoining properties), laugh about Renaissance lifestyles, and draw irreverent but sharp connections between theology, symbolism, and art history—from cherubs in the Book of Ezekiel to Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction speech. It’s a lively, funny, and deeply informed tour through the early stirrings of one of art’s great minds. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #225 – Teenage Michelangelo: The Buff Baby Jesus and the Marble Prodigy (Michelangelo, part 3) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this episode of Renaissance, Cameron and Ray continue their exploration of Michelangelo’s life and career, digging into the family connections, social structures, and cultural forces that shaped his rise. They trace Michelangelo’s privileged entry into the Medici circle, compare his fortunes to Leonardo da Vinci’s tougher climb, and dive into Florence’s vibrant humanist culture of the late 15th century. The conversation ranges from patronage networks and family loyalty, to the artistic apprenticeship system, to Michelangelo’s sexuality and celibacy, with plenty of irreverent humour along the way. From Giovanni Rucellai’s church facades to Medici palace gossip, this episode paints a vivid portrait of how power, privilege, and art collided in the making of one of history’s greatest geniuses . There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #224 – Privilege, Paint, and Patronage (Michelangelo, part 2) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

Cameron and Ray dive into the life and legend of Michelangelo, kicking off what promises to be a long-running series on one of history’s most celebrated artists. Drawing on Vasari’s Lives of the Artists and contemporary sources, they explore Michelangelo’s early years, the mythology surrounding his divine protection, his family’s noble (and possibly invented) lineage, and the role of Florence in shaping his destiny. Along the way, they discuss Vasari’s glowing (and often revised) accounts, Michelangelo’s rockstar reputation, the tragic loss of his mother, and the cultural weight of his name. From divine breast milk to stepping in shit, this episode mixes history, irreverence, and insight in equal measure. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #223 – Mickey The Angel (Michelangelo part 1) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this final instalment of the First Crusade series, Cameron and Ray bring the long march to its bloody climax with the siege and fall of Jerusalem in 1099. They blend dark humour with historical detail as they recount the Crusaders’ desperate conditions, the political and religious fervour driving them, and the brutal reality of the conquest. Along the way, they explore the parallels between medieval crusading zeal and modern Christian Zionism, the strategic blunders and visions that shaped the battle, and the horrifying aftermath as the victorious Crusaders massacred Muslim and Jewish inhabitants. The episode closes by reflecting on how this slaughter reshaped Christian-Muslim relations for centuries and teeing up a return to Renaissance art in future episodes. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #222 Thank Christ: The End of the First Crusade (The Crusades part 31) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this penultimate episode of _The Renaissance_’s epic First Crusade arc, Cameron and Ray finally march the crusaders to the gates of Jerusalem — nearly three years and 2,000 miles after they first set off. Along the way, they tackle imperial betrayal, failed negotiations with the Fatimids, the crusaders’ worsening food and supply situation, and the final collapse of faith in the Holy Lance. As always, the boys riff on pop culture (Entourage, The Room, Seinfeld), personal memories (including a tragic Grand Canyon update), and theological absurdities — all while slowly, painfully dragging us through history like Raymond of Toulouse refusing to abandon a failed siege. Expect the usual mix of absurd humour, historical insight, and just enough blasphemy to keep things spicy. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #221 God Doesn’t Do Requests (The Crusades part 30) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this wild, irreverent, and historically sharp episode of _Renaissance_, Cam and Ray tear into the chaotic early months of 1099. As Raymond of Toulouse and the other Crusader leaders fumble their way down the Levantine coast, we get siege fails, castle bluffs, and political drama worthy of a reality TV series. Cam debuts his AI-generated theme song, shares the origin of Valentine’s Day (hint: it involves arrows — and not Cupid’s), and explains why Peter Bartholomew’s fiery trial didn’t end well for either his skin or Raymond’s reputation. Also: Trump analogies, cannibal jokes, Dexter cosplay, and a city that really doesn’t want you to finish first or last. Pure Renaissance chaos. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #220 Valentine’s Day: Blood, Not Roses (The Crusades part 29) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In Episode 219 of The Renaissance Times, Cameron and Ray are diving deep into the next leg of the First Crusade. They follow Raymond of Toulouse as he reluctantly resumes the crusade toward Jerusalem, dealing with infighting, cannibalism fatigue, and logistical nightmares. The episode paints a vivid picture of political fragmentation within the Muslim world at the time — from the Fatimids in Egypt under Al-Afdal to the squabbling Turkish emirs — and highlights the complex, cynical diplomacy that both sides employed. There’s history, yes, but also siege engines, geopolitical realpolitik, sex jokes, and a warning not to be the last guy holding the rope. The Crusaders inch closer to their holy goal, but not without betraying allies, pillaging sheep, and making questionable tactical decisions. As always, Cameron and Ray bring levity, wit, and brutal honesty to a bloody chapter of history. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #219 – Jerusalem or Bust (The Crusades part 28) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this darkly hilarious and horrifying episode, Cam and Ray dive deep into the Crusades—specifically the winter of 1098–1099—where starvation and power games took centre stage. The guys discuss Bohemond’s Machiavellian brilliance in manipulating both Muslims and fellow Crusaders, the siege of Ma’arrat al-Numan, and the desperate, documented acts of cannibalism that shocked even medieval chroniclers. Along the way, they ponder cannibalism’s evolutionary logic, debate its moral context, and detail the fine art of seasoning a human rump roast. There’s also an impromptu history of “giving head,” strategic gift-giving via severed Turkish skulls, and slippery slopes into tyranny and baby BBQs. It’s one of the wildest, funniest, and most unsettling episodes of the Renaissance Times yet. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #218- Eat the Rich (aka the Turkish Prisoners) (The Crusades part 27) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

In this episode of _The Renaissance Times_, Cam and Ray dive into the chaos and absurdity that followed the siege of Antioch in 1098. With the Pope’s legate dead, the Crusader princes lose their spiritual leash and immediately devolve into power games, cowardice, and opportunistic violence. We’ve got pandemic panic (complete with medieval nobles doing the ol’ “every man for himself” routine), Christian cannibalism foreshadowing, mass death, military alliances with Muslim rebels, and the wild tale of a captured widow turned war bride—plus a crash course in medieval pigeon-post espionage. Oh, and someone tries to convert a mosque into a Catholic bishopric with the help of the _Orthodox_ bishop. It’s a mess. A bloody, bureaucratic, and occasionally hilarious mess. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #217- Christian Cannibals & Cowardly Crusaders (The Crusades part 26) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

By Christmas of 1097, the Crusaders continued to lay siege to Antioch but it has gone on so long they are running out of supplies. One out of every seven men was dying of hunger. Even a greater percentage of horses were also dying. Because Jesus loved them. Both sides continued to hope for the arrival of reinforcements to turn the tables.   There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES Transcript   100:00:02.080 –> 00:00:15.689Cameron Reilly: Welcome back to the Renaissance Times Podcast my name is Cameron Riley. With me in the Cold Chair in Virginia, is block of ice ray Harris. 200:00:16.059 –> 00:00:18.260Ray Harris: Iced tea. That’s that’s right. That’s right. 300:00:18.260 –> 00:00:21.069Ray Harris: I like that. It’s a pleasure to be here. Thank you. 400:00:21.590 –> 00:00:22.220Ray Harris: So. 500:00:22.220 –> 00:00:31.899Cameron Reilly: Talking about the siege of Antioch. This is Part 2 of the siege of Antioch during the 1st Crusade, late 1,097 beginning of 1,098. 600:00:32.330 –> 00:00:38.620Cameron Reilly: In our last episode we were talking about how the Crusaders had blockaded Antioch. 700:00:38.840 –> 00:00:40.969Cameron Reilly: Towards the end of 1,097. 800:00:41.540 –> 00:00:46.549Cameron Reilly: But they’re running out of supplies. They’re running out of food. It’s starting to get cold. 900:00:46.720 –> 00:00:56.629Cameron Reilly: They don’t have enough men. They don’t have the siege engines. They need to really take this amazing fortress of Antioch with 400 towers and huge wall. 1000:00:57.040 –> 00:01:00.529Cameron Reilly: Meanwhile Yogi Bear, the governor of. 1100:01:00.530 –> 00:01:01.340Ray Harris: And y’all. 1200:01:01.340 –> 00:01:04.819Cameron Reilly: Doesn’t have enough men to defend. It 1300:01:05.010 –> 00:01:13.859Cameron Reilly: also has to worry about his supply lines. So neither side are really attacking the other side. They’re both waiting for relief forces to arrive 1400:01:14.210 –> 00:01:24.230Cameron Reilly: and just trying to do the best they can to wait the other side out. Whoever gets the relief forces to arrive 1st are going to have an advantage. 1500:01:24.530 –> 00:01:24.859Ray Harris: The exact. 1600:01:24.860 –> 00:01:28.289Cameron Reilly: So that is where we are at. 1700:01:28.580 –> 00:01:50.520Ray Harris: Well again. I think it’s important to realize that the Crusaders they’ve been on a roll. They have just been kicking ass and taking names. They come up to Antioch, and they knew they knew it was going to be difficult. But now they are truly stymied. And you’re right. It’s all about supplies. They’re running low on food. They’re running low on faith, let’s be honest. Some of them are like, you know, it’s gone on our side. I don’t know if he is. 1800:01:50.580 –> 00:02:04.880Ray Harris: he’s a shit teammate. So the point is that they are really starting to struggle, and it’s getting cold, and I don’t know about you, but wearing armor in the cold. That kind of sucks, too. But the point is, it’s become a waiting game, and that you can. You can’t speed up outside events. 1900:02:05.170 –> 00:02:08.479Ray Harris: and their faith starts to weaken. 2000:02:10.130 –> 00:02:21.969Cameron Reilly: When they had 1st arrived outside of Antioch. There were plenty of sheep and cattle in the nearby plains. The granaries of the villages around the area still contained most of the supplies from the year’s harvest. 2100:02:22.130 –> 00:02:32.279Cameron Reilly: Despite the fact that Yogi bear in Antioch had been trying to get as much of that inside the walls as he could, but they had managed to feed well. The Crusaders. 2200:02:32.420 –> 00:02:32.840Ray Harris: To what? 2300:02:32.840 –> 00:02:37.970Cameron Reilly: They had neglected to put away supplies for the winter months. 2400:02:37.970 –> 00:02:38.830Ray Harris: Right. 2500:02:39.010 –> 00:02:49.140Cameron Reilly: Possibly an oversight, possibly thinking it’ll all be done in a week. They’re like George Bush when he was like, you know. 2600:02:49.390 –> 00:02:55.110Cameron Reilly: one and done in and out. 2 weeks mission accomplished, but it drags on. It starts. 2700:02:55.110 –> 00:02:55.450Ray Harris: I’ll jump. 2800:02:55.450 –> 00:02:56.530Cameron Reilly: Drag on. 2900:02:56.790 –> 00:03:13.529Cameron Reilly: Now they had to go foraging over an ever increasing area, which meant they were more likely to get off by the small Turkish sorties that were being sent out of Antioch to cut them down as they were, returned 3000:03:13.530 –> 00:03:20.830Cameron Reilly: humor stragglers coming back from fraudulent parties, you know. They’re hiding. The Turks are hiding in the bushes, jumping 3100:03:20.830 –> 00:03:21.340Cameron Reilly: Yup. 3200:03:22.470 –> 00:03:30.269Ray Harris: yeah, taking what they yeah. So around Christmas time, 1097, the food’s almost gone. The countryside’s bare. 3300:03:30.680 –> 00:03:55.680Ray Harris: And we’re going to say this a couple of times. The princes of the Crusaders. They hold a council, and here’s what they’re going to do. Step one. You get together, and someone gets out the whiteboard. They decide that Bohemian and Robert of Flanders are going to take some troops, and they’re going to go up the Orontes valley towards Hama, another smaller city. They’re going to raid the villages in that direction. Meanwhile Raymond and the Bishop of La Poi, I’m not sure how to say that 3400:03:55.680 –> 00:04:18.559Ray Harris: we’ll conduct the siege because Jeffrey at this point is very ill, so at least they’ve got a plan. We’re going to go try to raid, you know, as God intended us to do. You guys start harassing the walls. And maybe between these 2 things we can actually move the needle a little bit, not the best plan in the world, but it’s something. So Robert and Bohem had sent out set out on December 28.th 3500:04:19.769 –> 00:04:21.559Cameron Reilly: With about 20,000 men. 3600:04:22.190 –> 00:04:26.509Cameron Reilly: And of course Yogi Bear knew immediately about their departure from. 3700:04:26.510 –> 00:04:26.949Ray Harris: Have the fact. 3800:04:26.950 –> 00:04:36.619Cameron Reilly: Word, getting back into his camp. So he waited until they were out of sight, and then, on the 29th attacked across the bridge 3900:04:36.810 –> 00:04:41.519Cameron Reilly: and fell onto the Crusaders, who were camped north of the river. 4000:04:41.870 –> 00:04:42.280Ray Harris: Yes. 4100:04:42.280 –> 00:04:52.700Cameron Reilly: The attack was not expected, but Raymond’s quick thinking saved the situation. He quickly rounded up a group of knights, charged out towards the Turks. 4200:04:52.700 –> 00:04:53.310Ray Harris: Damn right. 4300:04:53.310 –> 00:04:57.750Cameron Reilly: Turned and fled back across the bridge. 4400:04:57.970 –> 00:04:58.370Ray Harris: Yes. 4500:04:58.370 –> 00:04:59.580Cameron Reilly: Hooray! Success. 4600:04:59.580 –> 00:05:03.010Ray Harris: But it gets better except 4700:05:03.010 –> 00:05:28.049Ray Harris: well, except and yet it almost gets better. Remember when they 1st got there, Raymond is like, Okay, who wants to attack. Now who’s with me? And sadly, no one else was raising their arms when they chased this Turkish party back to the gates. They almost get there before the gates were closed. This could be it. This could be the thing that turns the entire battle. Maybe Raymond was right the entire time. 4800:05:28.230 –> 00:05:36.939Ray Harris: however, and I’m not blaming God, I’m not saying God had anything to do with this but one of the one of the nights Horace throws his rider. It’s dark. 4900:05:36.940 –> 00:06:02.669Ray Harris: There’s a lot of confusion. There’s a lot of panic. They don’t know what’s going on. Did the horse throw him? Was he knocked off by an attack, they start to panic, and they retreat, and now they are being chased back by the Turks to their camp. But the good news is, when the Crusaders get back to their camp. They turn, they start to fight. The Turks know that they can’t take them, so they go back to the walled city. But the point is. 5000:06:03.120 –> 00:06:19.500Ray Harris: they almost got inside one of the gates. But it but it doesn’t happen again. It was a close run thing, but this is what they’re doing. They’re literally pricking each other, just taking as many men out of each side as you can, trying to weaken their overall force. 5100:06:21.450 –> 00:06:31.889Cameron Reilly: And when the horse throws the rider and turns back onto the bridge it creates panic and confusion in the Crusaders cavalry. A lot of them end up in the water. 5200:06:31.890 –> 00:06:32.330Ray Harris: Oh, shit. 5300:06:33.145 –> 00:06:35.590Cameron Reilly: And the the 5400:06:35.820 –> 00:06:44.419Cameron Reilly: dead lost horses lost cavalry, so lives were lost on both sides, but especially among the Crusaders. 5500:06:44.730 –> 00:06:49.330Cameron Reilly: Meanwhile Bohemond was riding south with Robert of Flanders. 5600:06:49.550 –> 00:07:08.190Cameron Reilly: totally ignorant that a huge relief force was moving up towards him of Damascus, had left his capital with Yogi Bear’s sons, and a huge army at Hama. The Emir joined them with his forces. Oh. 5700:07:08.190 –> 00:07:08.680Ray Harris: Shit. 5800:07:08.680 –> 00:07:21.499Cameron Reilly: On the 30th of December they learned that the crusading army was close by, and they immediately marched on them and came upon the Crusaders. The next morning, at a village called Albara. 5900:07:21.830 –> 00:07:34.709Cameron Reilly: Now the Crusaders were taken by surprise, and Robert, whose army was a little ahead of Bohemians, was nearly surrounded, but Bohem being the Badass, that he was. 6000:07:34.710 –> 00:07:35.420Ray Harris: Right. 6100:07:36.220 –> 00:07:40.570Cameron Reil

Kerbogha, the governor of Mosul, with a massive coalition army he’d built, on his way to relieve Antioch, paused to eliminate Baldwin in Edessa. One of his new allies was Ridwan of Aleppo, who relied heavily on the Shi’a ‘Order of Assassins’, led by Hassan-i Sabbah, to stay in power. And Sabbah was friends with the Persian polymath Omar Khayyam. So let’s go down some rabbit holes. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #208 – Omar Comin’ (The Crusades part 17) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

This episode finds the Crusaders marching through the Anatolian desert, doing deals with French pirates, selling their armour and watching pack animals sliding down wet mountain paths, until finally reaching the city/fortress of Tarsus – where they immediately turn on and kill each other, before eventually moving on towards Antioch. This was less a unified Christian army and more a coalition of competing interests, with each leader vying for their own piece of Muslim territory. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #204 – A Coalition of Competing Interests (The Crusades part 13) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

On his way to Constantinople, Bohemond attacked a village of Christian heretics, because having different opinions should not be tolerated. When he arrived at the Byzantine capital, he met with Alexios but didn’t trust his cooking. After he left, he was quickly followed by Count Raymond of Toulouse, who thought he should be in charge of the allied invasion and had a knack for building barricades… out of corpses. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #200 – Raw Meat (The Crusades part 9) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

The failure of the People’s Crusade didn’t stop the overall appetite in Europe for pillaging the Holy Land. They still had the Prince’s Crusade. A bunch of rich young men, their vassals and hired mercenaries set out to pillage Jerusalem and anything else appetising along the way. Even, perhaps Constantinople. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #197 – The Prince’s Crusade (The Crusades part 6) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

At the end of April in 1096, a priest by the name of Volkmar, a monk called Gottschalk, and an army from the Rhineland led by a Count Emich set off on the First Crusade with tens of thousands of soldiers and enthusiastic pilgrims… following a goose that had been inspired by God… and a holy goat. Their first order of business was to kill as many Jews as possible. Why? Because something something Jesus. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post Renaissance #195 – The Holy Goose and the Holy Goat (The Crusades part 4) appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

Our guest today, Toby Lester, has worked as a refugee affairs officer for the United Nations, helped with programmes in eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, undertaken Peace Corps work in Yemen. He has written also extensively for national publications, including the Smithsonian, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The American Scholar, The Wilson Quarterly, BBC Magazine, and the London Times. He also worked at The Atlantic in a variety of editorial capacities: including as the managing editor. Today he serves part-time as a senior editor for Harvard Business Review and edits books for writers, but he is himself a writer of two wonderful history books, The Fourth Part of the World (2009) and Da Vinci’s Ghost (2011) which is about Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post #138 – Toby Lester, Da Vinci’s Ghost – Leonardo da Vinci Part 27 appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

Taking a short break from Leonardo, our guest today is Julia Charity, an official Vatican tour guide! Julia, who originally hails from the UK, tells us how she ended up as a Vatican tour guide and about some of her favourite art on display in the Pope’s fortress, including “The Last Judgment” by Michelangelo, the “Transfiguration” by her “Renaissance husband”, Raphael, and the Borgia Apartments. If you want to book a Vatican tour with Julia, you can email here at theacharity[at]gmail.com. There something secret here that only members can see. Probably an audio player or something. If you want to listen to one of our many free episodes, go here. FREE EPISODES The post #136 – Julia & The Vatican appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

Curtis Wong has had an incredible career. He has produced critically acclaimed educational CD-ROMs at Corbis and the Voyager Co., as well as the definitive editions of feature films for the Criterion Collection. He ran  the Content Group at Intel, and was granted many patents at Microsoft Research. Today he joins us to tell some stories from his career, including his groundbreaking work with Bill Gates to produce the digital version of Leonardo da Vinci’s Codex Leicester. The post #120 – Leonardo da Vinci Part 13 – Curtis Wong appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

We chat with one of the world’s leading authorities on Leonardo da Vinci – Matthew Landrus from Oxford University, author of Leonardo da Vinci’s Giant Crossbow.   The post #118 – Leonardo da Vinci Part 11 – Matthew Landrus appeared first on The Renaissance Times.

If you’re wondering “where are rest of the episodes?”, they are on our website as part of our membership program. The post Where are rest of the episodes? appeared first on The Renaissance Times.