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That Shakespeare Life — History
That Shakespeare Life

Hosted by Cassidy Cash, That Shakespeare Life takes you behind the curtain and into the real life of William Shakespeare.

Latest Episodes:

Epiphany Celebrations and Customs for the 16-17th Century Jan 06, 2025

Show notes

January 6 is the day that many celebrate a holiday called Epiphany, the first manifestation of Jesus as the Son of God to the Gentiles, which happened through the visit of the Magi, or the Three Kings, who visited Jesus and brought him the now famous gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrr. The holiday was celebrated in Shakespeare's lifetime, but just like today when the holiday is marked by cultural and regional variations for exactly what those celebrations will include, Epiphany in the 16-17th century was unique as well. Here today to walk us through the history of Epiphany and how it was celebrated in Shakespeare's lifetime is our guest, Beatrice Groves.

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Ice Skating and Winter Sports Dec 30, 2024

Show notes

When the weather was cold in England, it could get frigidly cold, even causing the rivers and lakes to freeze over. In Elizabethan England, you may be surprised to learn that ice sports, such as skating, even hockey, were practiced on the ice in wintertime. To share with us the history of these sports, the archaeological record that survives to demonstrate that history, as well as what we know about ice skating and physical skates that were used to accomplish these activities, is our guest and historian, Tomas Masar.

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Wassail, Wassailing, and the 16th Songs to Sing Dec 23, 2024

Show notes

A drink, as much as it was songs and a group activity, wassail has been a traditional part of the Christmas season in England, and particularly a favorite of Twelfth Night celebrations, for centuries, including before and during the life of William Shakespeare. In Shakespeare's Macbeth, Lady Macbeth talks about wine and wassail going together to muddle up the brain, Falstaff mentions a wassail candle in Henry IV Part II, and three other references in Shakespeare's plays refer to wassail as something that happened at night and existed somewhere between a greeting and something that could lead to trouble. Here today to share with us the songs from Shakespeare's lifetime that were considered wassail songs, as well as to help us unravel the complicated history of what it meant to go wassailing from the house and how that's related to Christmas and even apple trees, is our guest and musical historian, Debi Simons.

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Veterinarian Medicine, Farriers, and Marshalcy Dec 16, 2024

Show notes

Shakespeare's plays mention horses over 300 times across his works, reflecting the huge place in the every day lives of people that this animal occupied. For something that was so essential for travel and for work, it makes sense that a horse owner would want to make sure their horse received the best of care. The art of horse doctoring in the 16th century generally fell under the purview of the blacksmith, who was responsible for the horse shoeing. The word for practicing medicine on animals for the medieval period was known as "marshalcy" in English, and it comes from the word "menescalia" in Catalan. Today, they are best known as farriers. Our guest this week, Carmel Ferragud, is an expert in the history of veterinarian medicine and specifically the history of Marshalcy. Today he joins us to discuss the activities of the 16th century farrier, what kind of medical care was available for animals in the 16-17th century, and exactly what veterinarian medicine would have been like for Shakespeare's lifetime.

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Mead, Metheglin, Hydromel, and Other Fermented Drinks Dec 09, 2024

Show notes

Mead has been made since ancient times and is the poster drink for historical gatherings, often being carried around in a large mug. You may know that this beverage is alcoholic, but you may be surprised to learn how it is different from other alcoholic drinks, particularly in the 16th century. If you look up mead today, it's known as a honey wine and can be mixed with a variety of herbs and spices, and as the recipes describe it, mead starts to sound more like a beer than a wine, and since wine is made from grapes, not honey, you may confused about what makes a "honey wine" like mead. To learn more about what defines this classic historic brew, and how that's different from other varieties of distilled or fermented beverages, as well as to walk through the history of how to make mead, we are delighted to welcome our guest, Laura Angotti.

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Migraines, Symptoms, and Treatments for 16-17thC Dec 02, 2024

Show notes

In Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the nurse complains of a headache saying "Lord, how my head aches! what a head have I! It beats as it would fall in twenty pieces." In 1582, Bartholomew the Englishman's 13th century text was reprinted in London, describing a condition called "emigraina" that Bartholomew defined as "similar to hammers beating in the head." Whether it was called emigraina, head aches, or megrym, as some contemporary accounts have called it, it is plain that migraines were a common problem for Shakespeare's England, with proposed solutions ranging from mild tonics and elixirs, all the way to dangerous blood letting and even brain surgery. Here this week to help us understand the history of migraines, their diagnosis, and their treatment, for the 16-17th century is our guest and author of the chapter titled "History of migraine" in the Handbook of Clinical Neurology, Dr. Peter Koehler.

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Samoset, his Life, and His Legacy Nov 25, 2024

Show notes

Samoset is a name spoken with respect around American dinner tables every November as we celebrate Thanksgiving, when Samoset is remembered with gratitude, for being willing to bridge the language gap for the English colonists who had just arrived at Plymouth. While Samoset's visit to the colonists happened 5 years after Shakespeare's death, the rest of Samoset's life is actually contemporary with Shakespeare, spanning from the 1590s through the mid 1600s, which is why Samoset is our topic for our Thanksgiving episode this year, so we can get to know more of the backstory of this man whose contact with the Pilgrims you may remember, but whose life story may be new for you, as it was for me. Here today to share the life of Samoset and what led up to him making contact with the Pilgrims at Plymouth in the 1620s is our guest, and author of the book titled "Here First, Samoset and the Wawenock of Pemaquid, Maine" Jody Bacheldor

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Doors, How They Were Built, and Designed Nov 18, 2024

Show notes

Shakespeare has all kinds of references to doors in his works, at least 195 instances of the actual word "door" in fact, and for many of us, we probably gloss over the word 'Door" thinking we understand what he's talking about. However, architectural history tells us that doors were actually quite different for Shakespeare's lifetime than what we have today from how they were made, to how they were constructed, and even how they were locked. Our guest this week, James Campbell is an expert in architectural history and joins us today to help us understand more about what doors were like in the 16-17th century including what kind Shakespeare might have had on his house.

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Gamut, a Musical Scale for the 16th Century Nov 11, 2024

Show notes

All 4 of Shakespeare's references to the word "gamut" show up in his play Taming of the Shrew where the characters talk about learning, and teaching, the "gamut." If you've ever heard the expression "run the gamut" or "cover the gamut" these expressions are based on an 11th century understanding of the word "gamut" developed by the musician and monk named Guido d'Arezzo, who used the term to described a whole range of notes. While there was no national standard of education in England for Shakespeare's lifetime, knowing about music, how to play, and scales like that of D'Arezzo, were considered a sign of nobility, which is the cultural perspective Shakespeare utilizes when he puts a gamut in his play. Here today to share with us the history of the gamut, the 16th century musicians contemporary with Shakespeare that might have influenced the musical scenes of this play, as well as what exactly is meant by the phrase "run the gamut" is our guest and professor at the O'Neill Hall of Music at the University of Notre Dame, Alexander Blachly.

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The Gunpowder Plot Nov 04, 2024

Show notes

Tomorrow night, November 5, is when many in England will celebrate an occasion known as Bonfire Night. They celebrate this day to mark the moment King James I was saved from the Gunpowder Plot (along with many in his government) when Guy Fawkes was thwarted in his attempt to blow up England's Parliament using gunpowder hidden beneath the building during an official government meeting. The event was a terrorist attack of the 17th century, to put the plot in contemporary terms, and the aftermath in England impacted William Shakespeare personally. Newly minted as the King's Men in 1603, the gunpowder plot is taking place just two years later, in 1605. Just one month after the Gunpowder Plot in December of 1605, Shakespeare writes King Lear, which contains many nods to the state of James' government, but the real play most connected to The Gunpowder Plot has to be Macbeth, which I argue was the play whose performance would silence all doubt about William Shakespeare's involvement, or suspected treasonous connections, in the aftermath of The Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Here today to walk us through the history of this event, and help us understand how the Gunpowder Plot connected to Shakespeare, is our guest, James Travers.

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