Empire

Company School painting is a fascinating yet often overlooked artistic tradition that emerged during the British East India Company’s rule in India. Indian artists blended Mughal, Rajput, and European styles to create detailed and vibrant artworks focused on flora and fauna. What makes these paintings extraordinary is how they capture not only scientific precision but also the rich artistic traditions of India.  At the heart of this story is the city of Lucknow, a hub of artistic and cultural refinement, where European imperialists like Claude Martin sought to document India’s natural world. Martin, a French adventurer-turned-British officer, was so committed to this project that he imported thousands of sheets of European watercolour paper and assembled a team of Indian artists to create meticulous botanical and zoological illustrations.  But as much as these paintings were a product of imperialism, they also provided an unprecedented opportunity for Indian artists to leave a lasting impression. Unlike earlier court art, which often left artists anonymous, Company School paintings are some of the first works where individual Indian painters were credited by name.  Listen as William and Anita unravel the intricate web of art, science, and empire, revealing a world where botanical illustrations were not just scientific tools, but also symbols of a rapidly changing society. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How did plants power imperialism? Gardening may be a quintessentially British hobby, but many of the familiar plants in our lives have a global – and colonial – history. From “fern-mania” leading wealthy Victorians to decimate environments around the world collecting ferns for their drawing rooms, to mahogany harvested by enslaved workers in the Caribbean, plants played an important role in the British Empire. Even official scientific names for plants included blatantly racist language up until the 1990s.  Over-harvesting of popular imperial products created monocultures and environmental destruction on a huge scale, and the movement of native plants across continents allowed invasive species to run riot. Yet the same imperialists who caused these problems also led the way in the early environmentalist movement, creating National Parks and protection schemes for animals on the risk of extinction.  Listen as William and Anita are once again joined by Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireworld, to explore the ways in which imperialists both destroyed and protected the natural world. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kew Gardens near London is one of the most famous botanical gardens in the world, welcoming countless visitors every year. But what many visitors may not know is that the history of Kew and that of the British Empire are intimately intertwined… At the height of the empire, Queen Victoria visited the iconic glass Palm House six times in the first few weeks it opened, and palm houseplants became a proud symbol because of her patronage. The botanical gardens also served as a laboratory that allowed imperial industries to boom. For example, seeds collected by Kew gardeners developed rubber plants that were shipped around the empire. The rubber plantations in British Malaya became so valuable that Britain fought a bloody war in 1948 to keep them. Listen as Anita and William are joined by Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireworld, to discuss how Kew was instrumental to the empire. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“The Nabateans are a silent partner in everything that goes on in the high summer of the Ancient period” - Bettany Hughes By the time of Jesus’ birth, a mysterious empire had built its wealth through trading two of the gifts present at the Nativity: frankincense and myrrh. Aromatic crystals harvested from the sap of gnarled trees, frankincense and myrrh were highly desirable commodities known as the tears or the breath of the gods. Based along the coast of the Red Sea, the nomadic Nabatean people were engineers, mariners and savvy traders, and they cleverly placed themselves as the middlemen in the trade of this incense. The Nabateans gave the world Arabic, and had a kingdom that even Alexander the Great could not siege - so why do so many of us know nothing about them? Listen as Anita and William are joined by Bettany Hughes to discuss how the Christmas gifts of frankincense and myrrh powered a mysterious and innovative kingdom… Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Evan Green Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The story of the Three Wise Men has been reinterpreted since it was first written down. The gift-bearing visitors to the newborn Jesus were initially described as “Magi”, meaning Persians of a priestly caste, but by the 4th century they were given the individual names of Gaspar, Melchior and Balthazar. And in Medieval Europe they were described not as Three Wise Men, but as Three Kings. Yet there’s more to the evolution of the Magi than Western ideas, in Syriac Christian traditions there are up to 24 Magi, and in the Ethiopian church they are named Hor, Karsudan, and Basanater. So how have these ideas developed over time? Listen as William and Anita are again joined by Professor Lloyd Lewellyn-Jones to discuss the evolution of the story of the Magi, and the influence of British imperialism on their symbolism… Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis  Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The truth behind the story of the Three Wise Men has more connections to empire than many of us realise… Featured in every Nativity scene in school plays, churches, and art around the world, the Three Wise Men are key characters in the Christmas story. They are only mentioned once in the Bible, appearing in Matthew’s gospel described as the Magi - meaning Persians of a priestly caste from Persia. But who were they? Where were they from? And what was the meaning behind their gifts? Listen as Anita and William are joined by Professor Lloyd Lewellyn-Jones to discuss how the story of the Magi highlights the intermingling of Persian and Jewish culture at the time, as well as tensions between two great empires: the Parthians and Rome… Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Aurangzeb is arguably the most controversial figure in Indian History. The mere mention of his name provokes fierce debate. Aurangzeb succeeded in seizing the throne by betraying his father and brothers. Infamous for his cold and ruthless vengeance against those in his way, Aurangzeb imposed puritan policies of religious intolerance on his subjects. He forced conversions and banned the wine and hashish so adored by his forbears. Aurangzeb would become defined by his battles with the Marathas. Despite his powerful autocracy, how did the end of his reign leave him broken? Why did it herald the beginning of the end for the Mughals? And what might have been, had he not won the war of succession?  Listen as Anita and William explore how Aurangzeb’s reign led to the disintegration of the Mughal Empire. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With their father in very bad health and rumours of his death swirling around the empire, Shah Jahan’s four sons decide it is their time to take his place. Only one has been chosen by Shah Jahan… The accomplished oldest son Dara Shukoh. However the war of succession has begun, and it will be brutal and stained by betrayal.  The people of Delhi are terrified at the coming storm. Shops are boarded as they prepare for a possible bloodbath. Two of Shah Jahan’s sons, Murad and Shuja, make the first move. They go through coronation ceremonies while Aurangzeb bides his time. He sends his father letters and fruit from the Deccan, acting like a loyal son.  Miraculously Shah Jahan does not die but begins to recover, only to see his sons tear each other apart and in open rebellion against him. Dara Shukoh, his anointed heir, rallies the imperial army to protect the weakened emperor. Aurangzeb, springs into action, rallying his own armies to advance not only on his brother but his father too. This will be one of the most crucial battles in the subcontinent’s history… Listen as William and Anita are joined again by Supriya Gandhi to discuss the rise of Aurangzeb, one of the most controversial historical figures in India today. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The battle of succession that erupted during a severe illness of Shah Jahan is often regarded as one which determined the fate of India. The eldest of Shah Jahan’s sons was Dara Shukoh—the Glory of Darius. Contemporary miniatures show that Dara bore a striking resemblance to his father, and like him he was luxurious in his tastes and refined in his sensibilities. He preferred life at court to the hardships of campaigning; he liked to deck himself in strings of precious stones and belts studded with priceless gems; he wore clothes of the finest silk and from each ear lobe he hung a single pearl of remarkable size. Dara was a tolerant Sufi and composed a study of Hinduism and Islam, ‘The Mingling of Two Oceans’, which stressed the affinities of the two faiths and what he believed to be the Vedic origins of the Quran. Then there was Aurangzeb, unloved by his father, a bitter and bigoted puritan, as intolerant as he was grimly dogmatic. He was a ruthlessly talented general and a brilliantly calculating strategist, but entirely lacked the winning charm of his predecessors.  Listen as William and Anita are joined by Supriya Gandhi, author of The Emperor Who Never Was: Dara Shukoh in Mughal India, to discuss the brothers who fought for the crown, and with it the future of India. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Within days of his beloved wife’s death, Shah Jahan starts designing his grandest architectural project yet to express his love for her. Her mausoleum is to be a domed, symmetrical, bright white building surrounded by aromatic gardens. But the Taj Mahal is not the only beautiful structure the Mughal Emperor commissions. One of the most extravagant examples of his work is the Peacock Throne, a dazzling display of precious gems, including the Koh-i-Noor diamond and the Timur Ruby. And Shah Jahan's architectural vision soon extends beyond Agra. He later leaves the capital, perhaps to escape the grief associated with his wife’s death, and embarks on building the city of Shahjahanabad, otherwise known as Old Delhi.  Listen as William and Anita discuss Shah Jahan’s magnificent architecture… Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Shah Jahan, the third son of the opium-addicted Jahangir, was born in 1592 with the name Khurram. More interested in precious gems and architecture than dancing girls at court, Khurram was reserved and carefully crafted his image as the “millennial sovereign”. Upon Jahangir's death, Khurram finds himself embroiled in a fierce succession struggle. His cunning and military experience, honed from years of avoiding his father's armies, proves invaluable in this fight for the throne.  But Khurram was not powerful on his own. He was surrounded by powerful women – raised by his step-grandmother Ruquiya Sultan, adored by his eldest daughter Jahanara, and most important of all loved and supported by his wife Mumtaz Mahal. She was his confidante and best friend, and to lose her would break his heart. But his broken heart would lead to the building of one of the most beautiful buildings in the world… Join Anita and William as they explore the early life of the fifth Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Often overshadowed by his son’s architectural wonders like the Taj Mahal, Emperor Jahangir was a true connoisseur of beauty.  His reign witnessed a flourishing of art, architecture, and craftsmanship through his patronage of impressive workshops of artists who created vibrant masterpieces. Jahangir continued expressing his love of the natural world through the paintings he commissioned: from zebras to squirrels to exotic birds. And women were not excluded from his world of art. His powerful wife Nur Jahan oversaw architectural projects like the “Baby Taj”, and female painters at court documented the intimate life of the imperial harem. But beyond documenting the world around him, how did Jahangir use art as propaganda, and what is the meaning behind the mysterious zodiac coins he created? Listen as William and Anita are joined by Susan Stronge, curator of the V&A exhibition, The Great Mughals: Art, Architecture and Opulence, to discuss the visual culture of the court of Jahangir. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Aaliyah Akude Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do you buy for a man who has everything?  Thomas Roe is tasked with wooing the Emperor Jahangir. On March 6th 1615, he sets sail from England on the 8 month voyage to the Mughal Empire, home to one fifth of the world’s population. He has been sent by James I and the East India Company on a diplomatic mission to improve trading relations. The English envy the fabulously rich Emperor Jahangir whose personal wealth is ten times that of the national revenue of England at the time. Expecting to be greeted as a diplomat, Roe arrives in India and is forced to undergo a customs check. He is ill and accompanied by a badly behaved cook and a drunk chaplain. He hasn’t even reached court in Ajmer and everything seems to be going wrong. Will he succeed in his mission to win over Jahangir? Listen as Anita and William are joined by Nandini Das, author of Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire, to discuss the grumpy ambassador’s stay at Jahangir’s court and how it shaped the East India Company. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Prince Salim grows up in the continuously expanding empire of his father, Akbar. The young prince is being primed to take on this legacy, but he is more interested in studying the natural world with intense curiosity by dissecting animals and observing their mating rituals. Later, with Akbar dead and Salim ready to rule, he fights off claims to power from his own son, blinding him as punishment for his insubordination. In 1605, Prince Salim becomes Emperor Jahangir, but is it his love of nature or his brutish desire for revenge that characterises his rule? Is he more David Attenborough or Hannibal Lecter?  Join Anita and William as they debate this question and explore the early life of the fourth Mughal Emperor. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As a dyslexic child, Akbar explored his curiosities about the world through visual wonders, and by having literature read aloud to him. As an adult, his love of art evolved as he became the patron of a multicultural group of calligraphers, painters, poets and more. A now renowned Mughal artistic style developed from his court, with iconic paintings full of bright colours and meticulous details. How did Akbar shape this style? And how was his art and architecture impacted by the religious tolerance he promoted? Listen as William and Anita explore the art and architecture that emerged from Akbar’s court. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Raja Birbal is a man of such exceptional wisdom and wit that he will become the stuff of legends. Birbal is just one of the Nine Gems Akbar surrounds himself with, remarkable people who will help the emperor enact a series of wide reaching and radical reforms. The ruler takes it upon himself to absorb the teachings of all religions he has access to, which includes the Portuguese Jesuits who are making Goa their home. In rejecting tradition in the pursuit of reason, how will Akbar foster open minded religious debate? And how, amidst all this peaceful dialogue, does he still manage to wage war and expand his kingdom?  Listen as William and Anita discuss how Akbar revolutionised his governance and promoted religious tolerance in his realm.  Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s 1542, and the baby who will grow up to be Akbar the Great is born into nothing and nowhere. His father, Humayun is on the run to Persia and the young family are living like beggars in the desert. Later, in the impossibly wealthy Mughal court, the prince becomes emperor at aged just thirteen. Akbar is a unique example of tolerance in an era of religious divisions, presiding over an empire of flourishing religious pluralism and meritocracy. But how will he first go about building and cementing this empire? And what lengths will he go to to eliminate those threatening his rule?  Listen as William and Anita explore how Akbar consolidated his power through any means necessary. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis & Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kicked out of India, Humayun roams the desert as a nomad, accompanied by his young pregnant wife, his court poets, and his library camels. Sher Shah has taken his throne and the Mughal Empire seems as though it will end soon after it had begun. But Humayun does not give up, he seeks refuge in Iran and seeks the support of a Persian cavalry to overthrow Sher Shah in India, and Humayun’s own treacherous brothers in Afghanistan. All the while, the openminded leader continues to explore his curiosities in astrology, inventions, and design. Listen as William and Anita discuss how the emperor Humayun reconquered India. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis + Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On his death bed, Babur tells his eldest son not to fight with his brothers however awful they will be to him. As his father passes away, Humayun inherits a fragile empire on shaky ground. And his dad’s message of peace quickly comes to the fore when his treacherous younger brothers plot to take his throne. Once thought of as the hopeless hippie son, Humayun was an accomplished military general who had served in Babur’s forces as a teenager, and as emperor he continued to command troops against a familiar enemy – Sher Shah. But despite Humayun’s military might, he seemingly cannot win against the formidable Afghan warlord. Will he lose all that his father had built for their dynasty? Listen as William and Anita explore the life of the second Mughal emperor, Humayun. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Against all odds, Babur defeats Sultan Lodi and captures Delhi. But despite the wealth that India can provide him, Babur hates his new home. He complains of the heat, the lack of his favourite fruits, and the culture. Yet he is a masterful tactical ruler, and begins to shape a Mughal government that he will soon pass down to his descendants. Although he had won against the Delhi sultanate, he faces a new threat from the Rajputs in the south who are even more heavily armed. Babur enters his final battle at Khanwa, and all the while he is ferociously writing his memoirs: documenting his thoughts, feelings, and love of nature in a way that will keep his memory alive long after his death… Join William and Anita as they explore the four years Babur spent establishing his kingdom in India before he passed away. To buy tickets for Great Mughals: Art, Architecture and Opulence visit: https://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/great-mughals-art-architecture-opulence?utm_source=empire_podcast&utm_medium=paid_editorial&utm_campaign=great_mughals_empire_podcast Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis + Becki Hills Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices