5.09 Hortense Mancini (1) The runaway Mazarinette
/A woman born in Italy, raised in the court of the Sun King and who would become the mistress of England’s most famous womanising monarch.
5.08 Roxelana (3) A tale of two princes
/Roxelana goes to even more extraordinary lengths to protect her family, but even she would not be able to keep cracks from opening up.
5.07 Roxelana (2) From 'sold meat' to Sultana
/Roxelana picks a fight with a rival and has another killed. She was playing for keeps.
5.06 Roxelana (1) Revolutionary monogamy
/Sold into slavery at a young age, Roxelana would tear up the rule book in the Imperial harem in Istanbul.
5.05 Lady Nijo: The confessions of a concubine
/After losing her parents at a young age, Lady Nijo is sent to be the concubine of Emperor Go-Fukakusa. But if he expected her to knuckle under, he would be sorely disappointed.
5.04 Servilia (2) The mother of an honourable man
/As the Roman Republic entered its death spiral - Servilia would have to choose between her son and the man she loved.
5.03 Servilia (1) Lover of Caesar
/The decline and fall of the Roman Republic is one of history's great epics - with a colourful cast of characters that have become household names. All of them men. All, except one.
5.02 Aspasia of Miletus: Notorious woman of Athens
/The teacher of Socrates and the lover of Pericles - Aspasia of Miletus came to Athens with nothing, but left quite a legacy.
5.01 Rulers' mistresses: History's other women
/In the fifth season of the Other Half Podcast, we are looking at Rulers' Mistresses: a cross-cultural story of extra-marital love and lust, bringing ten women, who so often existed in the shadows, into the light.
4.26 Pascalina Lehnert (2) The powerful virgin
/Pascalina helps propel Pius XII to the papacy, becoming his right-hand woman and the most powerful woman in Vatican history.
4.25 Pascalina Lehnert (1) Dealing with devils
/Pascalina would come a long way from her family farm in Bavaria, becoming the right-hand woman to a man who would become Pope just as Europe slipped towards war.
4.24 Christina of Sweden (4) The uninvited pest
/Scandal was never far from Christina but she is about to get embroiled in her most serious one to date.
Pontifacts: Women and Female Power in the Vatican with The Other Half Podcast
SUPPLEMENTAL: Elizabeth to Elizabeth, British Royal Funerals since 1603
/On Monday 19 September, Queen Elizabeth II will be laid to rest in Windsor after a state funeral at Westminster Abbey. Royal funerals have gone back hundreds of years, with the first one in the Anglican tradition occurring in 1603. What did those funerals look like, and how will they compare to the one we will watch tomorrow?
4.23 Christina of Sweden (3) Queen of the Flying Squadron
/Christina arrives in Rome and makes her mark on a very different court from the one in her homeland.
4.22 Christina of Sweden (2) The road to Rome
/One of the greatest conscious uncouplings in European royal history as Queen Christina does two unthinkable acts: give up both her throne and her faith.
4.21 Christina of Sweden (1) Athena of the North
/Christina, Queen of Sweden, is arguably the most fascinating female monarch in Early Modern history. One of learning and science, independence and free thinking. She is Scandinavia’s Elizabeth I in many ways, but their legacy is very different.
4.20 Olimpia Maidalchini (2) Innocent's dominatrix
/Corruption, family drama, betrayal. The pontificate of Innocent X would certainly not be a dull one with Olimpia Maidalchini at the helm.
4.19 Olimpia Maidalchini (1) Electing a female pope
/Olimpia was very different to her Renaissance forebears, but whose partnership with her brother-in-law would see her become the true power behind the throne of St Peter.
4.18 Felice della Rovere (2) The Temporal Mother of Bracciano
/You might expect Felice della Rovere’s place in history to more or less end with the death of her father - but in fact, she was just getting started.
4.17 Felice della Rovere (1) Aboard the matrimonial carousel
/Fortune played very little role in Felice's impact on history - few women achieved more in the Italian Renaissance than she.